Lehal Library

156 The Agrarian Uprising in the nature of -a reconnaissance and the misls were back in Amritsar to celebrate Divali A few days after the celebrations, they were back on the scene of operations and, despite suffering a reverse at the bands of the Robillas near Kam.al, came up to Kharkhauda near Delhi (from whence Banda had first called the Sikhs to arms fifty-seven years earlier). They allied themselves with tbejats ofBbaratpur and pillaged Rewari and many villages in the territories of the Raja ofJaipur. In March 1766 a combined anny of Sikhs andjats defeated the Marathas (who were coming up to help the Rajputs) in a battle fought on the banks oftbe river Chambal. The Jats then oca1pied Dholpur. The Sikhs turned back from Madhya Pradesh laden with spoils won during the campaign and money the Jats had given them for their services. News of their approach created panic in Delhi. Najibuddaulah hurried back to the capital and decided to give the Sikhs a taste of their own medicine.,,.. The Robillas caught up with the Sikhs near Panipat, inflicted many casua1ties, and made them part with the plunder they had amassed.66 While some of the Dai's forces were busy on the eastern front, others under the command of the Bhangi Sardars,Jhanda Singh and Ganda Singh. were extending the frontiers of the Sikh state towards the south. In the autumn of 1766 they captured the important town of Pak Pattan and proceeded up to Multan. Tht: operations had to be stopped, for Abdali had entered the Punjab again and all misls were required to muster their full strength to face the Afghans. 54 N.ajibuddaulah's biograph<'r, Numddin Hussain, gives a detailed account of rnese operations. '111, ':;ikhs will now receive a good thrashing,' he v.Tote, quoting N~jibuddaulah. 'They have mllch booty in their fight with Malhar Rao and have also got large sums fromJawahir Singh, so that they are heavily loaded. We ought to bar their path once more and do a splendid deed.' (Na.filmddauliih, p. 119.) 55 'The Sikhs were caught helpless and could do nothing. N.ajibuddaulah thus captured an immense amount of booty, including rnws upon rows of camels, horses, and ponies laden with booty. He drove away the Sikhs for five kos up Lo Kandhala.... The Sikhs lost a large number of men. It was after a long time that such an enormous booty was seized from the Sikhs.' (Na1lbuddauliili, pp. 119-20.)