MEGH RAJ

MEGH RAJ (d. 1864), the third son of Misr Divan Chand, starting as a clerk in Gobindgarh Fort at Amritsar under Maharaja Ranjit Singh, became head of the treasury at Amritsar in 1816. He held this position until the Maharaja`s death in 1839 soon after which Prince Nau Nihal Singh and Raja Hira Singh visited Amritsar to have his accounts checked. The accounts revealed no embezzlement, yet Megh Raj and his brother Rup Lal were taken into custody, and a fine of 5,00,000 rupees was imposed on them. They remained in captivity until Hira Singh`s assassination on 21 December 1844.

At the end of the first Anglo Sikh war in 1846, Megh Raj was appointed treasurer of the Lahore Darbar and, after the annexation of the Punjab in 1849, treasurer of the Lahore Division. This post he held till his death on 1 August 1864. Megh Raj was honoured with the title of Rai Bahadur by the British and made an honorary magistrate in 1862.

References :

1. Chopra, B. R., Kingdom of the Punjab. Hoshiarpur, 1968
2. Gupta, Hari Ram, Panjab on the Eve of First Sikh War. Chandigarh, 1975
3. Griffin, Sir Lepel and C.F. Massy, Chiefs and Families of Note in the Punjab. Lahore, 1940