DAYA KAUR, RAM

DAYA KAUR, RAM (d. 1823), widow of Gurbakhsh Singh of the Nishanavali principality of the Sikhs who ruled over Ambala, assumed control of the misi and the family estate upon her husband`s death in 1786. She ruled over the territory remarkably well for nearly 37 years. Sir Lepel Griffin in his The Rajas of the Punjab says, “She was an excellent ruler and her estate was one of the best managed in the protected territory.” In November 1808, Maharaja Ranjit Singh ejected Daya Kaur from the city and seized all her property and possessions.

He divided her country between Raja Bhag Singh of Jind, his maternal uncle, and Bhag Singh`s friend and ally, Bhai Lal Singh of Kaithal. In 1809, the cis Sutlej chiefs passed under British protection. Daya Kaur appealed to Colonel David Ochterlony, agent to the Governor General at the Ludhiana Political Agency, who forced the chiefs of Jind and Kaithal to restore to Daya Kaur territories which originally belonged to her. Daya Kaur died in 1823 and on her death her estates and property lapsed to the British government.

References :

1. Griffin, Lepel, The Rajas of the Punjab [Reprint]. Delhi, 1977