Baloki

The family trace themselves to Tara Singh Ghaiba, ruler of Dallewali Misl, so named after the village of Dala, near Sultanpur, in the Kapurthala State, not far from the junction of the Bias and Satlaj rivers. He was a Kang Jat of the town of Kang, and in his following were many Jats of Manjha, adventurers who flocked round the man able to offer them excitement and land. One of Tara Singh’s first exploits was to rob a detachment of Ahmad Shah’s troopers of their horses and arms when crossing the Beyn river, close to his home at Kang. Thus enriched, Tara Singh soon became a leader of importance. He visited Amritsar and allied himself with the Ahluwalias and Singhpurias, who were plundering wherever plunder was to be found. In 1760 he crossed the Satlaj and conquered the districts of Dharamkot and Fatahgarh, making over the latter to his cousins Dharam Singh and Kaur Singh, and retaining Dharamkot for himself.

On his return to the Doab he took Dakhni from Sharafudin, an Afghan of Jalandhar, and marched eastwards, seizing all the country around Rahon and taking up his residence in that town. He next captured Nakodar from the Manj Rajputs, and other groups of villages on the right bank of the Satlaj, including Mahatpur and Kot Badal Khan. His name had by this time become notorious amongst the Sikhs, and there were few matters connected with the sect in which he was not directly or indirectly concerned. He secured an alliance by marriage for his son Dasaundha Singh with Bibi Chand Kaur, daughter of the Raja Amar Singh of Patiala, and he was thus enabled to stretch his hand, when so minded, as far as Ambala, and take part in the quarrels of the Phulkian Chiefs. He rendered active assistance to Amar Singh in suppressing the rebellion of his half-brother Himat Singh in 1772 ; and he helped the Raja again in 1778 when attacked by Sardar Hari Singh Sialba, who was supported by Sardar Jasa Singh Ramgarhia. In the year following he joined the other Kbalsa leaders in restIsting an attempt made to recover the Malwa country by the Wazir Majad ul-Daula Abad-ul-Ahad. Later on, in 1794, we find him allied with the fanatic Bedi Sahib Singh of Una, Hushiarpur, in his invasion of Maler Kotla; which expedition ended unsuccessfully owing to pressure brought to bear upon the Sikhs by the Patiala Raja.

In 1799 Tara Singh was again in the field, this time on the side of his relatives, the Phulkians, who were measuring strength ith the celebrated George Thomas of Hansi; and shortly after he was busy at Faridkot championing the rights of the deposed Sardar Charat Singh. He appeared never to be able to take rest.

He died of a fever caught while following Maharaja Ranjit Singh in his expedition to Naraingarh, Ambala, in 1807. On his way back to the Manjha, Ranjit Singh took the opportunity of breaking up the powerful Dallewalia Misl, merging its possessions into the greater State he was rapidly consolidating for himself.

Dasaundha Singh was allowed to retain his father’s dakhni property till his own death, when it was made over by the Maharaja to Bedi Sahib Singh. To Gujar Singh, second son of Tara Singh, had been assigned the Ghumgarana estate south of the Satlaj. By some of the minor Phulkian Chiefs who, however, were obliged by Ranjit Singh to refrain from hostilities. He divided the villages amongst the Rajas of Patiala.

At annexation Sardars Narmal Singh and Bakhtawar Singh, sons of Jhanda Singh, possessed jointly onehalf of the two villages already mentioned. Under orders passed in 1847. They were maintained in these jagirs for life, subject to an annual service commutation payment of Rs. 280; the share of each to lapse at death. On the death of Sardar Bakhtawar Singh, childless, in 1873, a small pension was passed to his widows. and Jind and the Sardar of Nangla. The Nakodar and Mahalpur estates were the share of Jhanda Singh, the third son; but these were promptly seized for himself by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and placed under the care of Diwan Mohkam Chand, Nazim of Jalandhar. The Maharaja was ultimately induced to recognise Sardar Jhanda Singh’s rights to maintenance out of the patrimony, and he accordingly allowed him a half share in Baloki and Sharakpur. Generosity cost him nothing, for he had. already given the entire villages to some Udasi Sadhs and Akalis. The former refused to surrender possession, and Jhanda Singh was obliged to eject them by force. His mother, Rani Ratan Kaur, took refuge in the British Cantonment of Ludhiana, and was there granted a maintenance allowance of Rs. 1, 800 per annum.

Sardar Narmal Singh’s jagir was in like manner resumed in 1873, a life-pension of Rs. 200 per annum being granted to his widow. Narmal Singh was a Subadar in the British service, and had proved himself a gallant soldier.

The case of his son Amar Singh was represented to Government by Mr. D. G. Barkley, Deputy Commissioner of Jalandhar, in 1874. And it was ruled that Sardar Narmal Singh’s jagir share in Baloki and Sharakpur should descend to his son Amar Singh, and thence integrally to a selected male heir, the successor on each occasion to be chosen by Government. The compassionate allowance to Narmal Singh’s widow was of course resumed, and the grant was subjected to an annual nazarana deduction of Rs. 140. The value of the holding under the revised settlement is Rs. 685 per annum.

Sardar Amar Singh lived at Baloki, in which village he owned about forty ghumaos of land. He was married to a daughter of Sardar Sujan Singh, Jagirdar of Karari, Tahsil Jalandhar. The other members of the family were well connected by marriage but little of the old influence and none of its power remained.