Sikh State

A Sikh state is a political entity that is ruled by Sikhs. There were various Sikh states, empires, and dynasties, beginning with the first Sikh state established by Banda Singh Bahadur to the Sikh-ruled princely states of British India. Sikhism turned toward militancy by the end of the 17th century and by the 18th century, the Sikhs had established themselves as a dominant player in regional affairs, becoming the political elite of the Punjab. This transformation has been described as being one of rebels turning into rulers. During British-rule, the idea of Sikhs being a unique nation developed further and was aided by the colonial administrative policies. However, territoriality has not played a major part in the self-identity of the Sikhs.

History

Theological underpinnings

There was a prevailing Sikh belief in the mid-16th century that Guru Nanak was the master of both spirituality and temporality (''din'' and ''dunia'') but that he allowed Babur to have stewardship over political affairs. However, the Mughals were seen as going against this bestowal when they executed Guru Arjan (in 1606) and Guru Tegh Bahadur (in 1675). Thus, Guru Gobind Singh was envisioned as coming about to destroy the Mughals and their rule.

The formalization of the Khalsa order, which is exemplified as being sovereign, in the late 18th century has been described by scholars such as establishing a fundamental aspect of national-construction that allowed for a "national imagination" that gave a shared identity to the Sikh community which allowed for sovereignty and territoriality. The Khalsa was a marker of the Sikhs being a separate ''Quom'' (nation), which Walker Connor (1993) explains allowed for the development of a national identity of some sorts "that joins people, in the sub- conscious conviction of its members, from all its non-members in a most vital way". Meanwhile, Anne Murphy (2012) and Fenech (2008) believe that any claims to sovereignty were "guru-centric" to establish an environment of a self-governing religious community. However, not all scholars agree that the establishment of the Khalsa had nationalistic undertones, according to Giorgio Shani (2008) the Khalsa "de-territorialises both sovereignty and the nation" and rather was about unlimited sovereignty. Murphy, examining the works of the court-poet Sainapati, stresses that the Sikhs of the past were not overly bothered with political sovereignty. According Nicky Gurinder Kaur Singh, Guru Gobind Singh's ideal of ''raj'' was about sharing power with others in a spirit of equality and democracy and not conquering for oneself, domination of a particular piece of territory, nor establishing a dynasty.

The bards Satta Doom and Balvand Rai state the following in the Guru Granth Sahib regarding Guru Nanak establishing a ''raj'' (governance or rule):

The Sikh concept of '' miri-piri'' emphasizes that spirituality and temporality are intrinsically linked to one another, legitimizing Sikh aims to establish their own sovereignty. Guru Gobind Singh taught the principles of '' Raj Karega Khalsa'' as forming the basis for Sikh-rule. In-response to a question posed by Bhai Nand Lal, the tenth guru responded as follows on the issue of sovereignty:

Rattan Singh Bhangu's '' Panth Prakash'' describes Guru Gobind Singh as being the ruler of Anandpur in the 1690's, later blessing the Sikhs to rule over the Majha region.

Establishment of the first Sikh rule

The first Sikh polity, albeit a short-lived one, was founded by Banda Singh Bahadur in 1710, a disciple of Guru Gobind Singh, after his forces captured Sirhind and issued silver rupee coinage from the Mukhlisgarh Fort based at the Shivalik range. This was a republic that existed from 1710 to 1716. The issuing of coinage was a mark of sovereignty, marking the beginning of Banda's rule over Sirhind. Furthermore, Banda rejected using both the traditional Indic Bikrami calendar and the Islamicate calendar, creating his own calendar where the first year commenced on the date of his victory over Sirhind. Banda's state issued coins in the name of the Sikh gurus. Banda's rebellion lasted from 1708–1715, with the rebellion eventually failing with the capture of Banda and him being executed in Delhi in 1716. Banda's short-lived state had existed as a parallel government in northwestern India, which motivated future Sikhs to work toward the same achievement.

Formation of the Sikh Confederacy

The Mughal Empire in the early 18th century was one of decline due to a vartiety of factors, such as Persian and Afghan invasions. Bands of Sikh warriors, excited by the Khalsa ideals of sovereignty and Banda's temporary success, were active during this time, which has been labelled as a "heroic age" of the Sikhs. These Sikh bands were engaged in-warfare against their enemy, the Mughals, and eventually managed to conquer territory of their own.

Between the period of 1726–1733, Zakaria Khan, the Mughal viceroy of Lahore province, enacted a genocidal policy against the Sikhs. After the oppressive anti-Sikh government policy failed to get rid of the Sikh threat, the Mughal government decided to try pacifying the Sikhs by granting them an official ''jagir'' (estate) grant. Upon Sikh request, a ''Nawab'' title was offered to the Sikhs, which was bestowed upon Kapur Singh in 1733 (since Darbara Singh had rejected it), alongside a ''khilat'' and bag of gold. In 1734, Nawab Kapur Singh divided the Sikh congregation into two groups: the Taruna Dal and the Buddha Dal. Each of these Dals ("armies") were further sub-divided into five groups (with Kapur Singh's own grouping being the additional). After a short period of peace between the Mughals and Sikhs, differences between them started to grow again due to the restless and provocative antics of the Taruna Dal, and the Nawab-ship that was bestowed upon the Sikhs earlier by the Mughal Empire was revoked and the jagir was confiscated in 1735. Thus, the former anti-Sikh genocidal policies of the Mughals was put in-place again and the Sikhs once again had to disperse to places of safe haven, such as the Lakhi Jungle.

With the invasion of India by Nadir Shah between January–May 1739 and the t otal destruction of the Mughal administration in the Punjab as a result, the Sikhs saw an opportunity for themselves and pillaged and sought revenge on their enemies. According to the contemporary writer Harcharan Das in his ''Chahár Gulzár Shujá'í'', in 1740, one year after the attack of Nader Shah, a large force of Sikhs and Jats, including local Muslims, seized the Sirhind ''sarkar'' of the Jullunder Doab, establishing a short-lived polity with a person named Daranat Shah as its head. The rebellion was eventually crushed by a Mughal force in 1741 under Azimullah Khan and the Sikhs retreated to the Lakhi Jungle. According to Hari Ram Gupta, Daranat Shah was Baba Deep Singh.

On 1 July 1745, Zakarian Khan died and he was succeeded by less-effective Mughal administrators, such as Yahiya Khan. After this point, Kapur Singh divided the Sikh congregation into twenty-five bands (''jathas''), with each band consisting of about a hundred young Sikh men under the command of a respective leader. With this reform, a basic confederation structure for military activities of the Sikhs was forming shape.

After an initial invasion of India by Ahmad Shah Abdali, Kapur Singh realized that the Afghan invader would surely return for more loot, additionally due to the strict ruling-style of Moin-ul-Mulk, Kapur Singh resolved to reform the then sixty-five (the number of Sikh bands had since swelled from the twenty-five bands that had been established earlier) Sikh bands into eleven ''misls'' on the annual Vaisakhi gathering at Amritsar on 29 March 1748, establishing the Sikh Confederacy and its constituent misls, with the united army of all the Sikhs called the '' Dal Khalsa''. The earlier Taruna Dal and Buddha Dal division system that was established earlier in 1734 was retained, with each of the eleven misls being assigned as part of a dal, with the seminal division being as follows:

* Buddha Dal:
** Ahluwalia Misl
** Dallewalia Misl
** Faizulpuria Misl
** Karorasinghia Misl
** Nishanwalia Misl
** Shaheedan Misl
* Taruna Dal:
** Bhangi Misl
** Kanhaiya Misl
** Nakai Misl
** Ramgarhia Misl
** Sukarchakia Misl

The misls have been described as military bands led by a central leader, known as a ''misldar''. The chiefs of all the misls would convene bi-annually at the Darbar Sahib in Amritsar for an assembly known as the Sarbat Khalsa, with collective decisions being made by the body in-front of the Guru Granth Sahib being termed ''gurmattas''. The Sikhs were killed in large numbers by two genocides, the '' Chotta Ghalughara'' and the '' Vadda Ghalughara'' but their political ascendency continued, being aided by the Sikhs' attempt at state-formation and its accompanying institutions. By 1765, the Sikhs held Lahore and their influence spread allover the region.

Establishment of Sikh monarchies

In the 1760s, marked by the fall of Sirhind in 1763, many Sikh kingdoms began to take root after being founded by ''sardars'' (chiefs) of the precursory Sikh misls, such as Patiala, Jind, Nabha, Faridkot, Kalsia, Manimajra, Kapurthala, and Kaithal. The ''sarkar'' of Sirhind was cut-up and distributed amongst hundreds of both petty and prominent Sikh sardars. The Sikh kingdoms were mostly established in the region from the Sutlej river to the Delhi area, although some, such as Kapurthala and the Sikh Empire, laid in the trans-Sutlej region. A breakthrough was achieved when the Sikhs successfully took-over Delhi in the early 1780's, which allowed them to construct gurdwaras in the area. The Sukerchakia Misl formed the Sikh Empire after the capture of Lahore in 1799. In 1801, Ranjit Singh formally established the Kingdom of Lahore. In 1809, the remaining Sikh monarchies of the cis-Sutlej region came under British protection and some of the survived until 1947 in the form of a princely-state.

Ranjit Singh's polity led to the state patronage of the Sanatan Sikhs, whom he favoured. The onset of Sikh monarchical-rule also led to the weakening of the authority of the Akal Takht and the ending of collective-decision making in the form of the Sarbat Khalsa. Meanwhile, the Khalsa Sikhs maintained control over the Sikh Army, which allowed them to still wield influence. After Ranjit Singh died in 1839, his empire quickly fell to the British due to internal infighting and British scheming, resulting in the annexation of the Sikh Empire in 1849. Its deposed boy-king, Duleep Singh, was exiled to England. The Sikh Empire never developed into a modern nation-state, being annexed before such a possible development could take-place, but rather can be described as being a "developing system of power".

Colonial period

During the colonial period, the British began to preferentially recruit Sikhs into its colonial military in the period after the Indian rebellion of 1857, as the Sikhs helped suppress the mutineers. Sikhs were labelled as being a martial-race by the British. After 1857, the British began to more firmly emphasize religious, racial, social, and caste differences amongst its Indian subjects, especially through its decennial censuses, the first of which was held in 1871. The British governed the Punjab through a careful balancing act between the colonial administrators, the landlords, and the traditional custodians of religious sites. Since annexation in 1849, the British evaluated the custodians of Sikh shrines and allowed them to claim proprietary rights over the religious sites. This would have major ramifications and lead to major social movements amongst the Sikhs. The British-rule made it possible for the Sikhs to develop further their sense of nationhood, where they began to view their religion as being a world religion and that the Sikhs themselves were a unique nation.

Earlier British works, such as John Malcolm’s ''Sketch of the Sikhs: A Singular Nation'' (1812) and Joseph Davey Cunningham’s ''History of the Sikhs'' (1849) characterized the Sikhs as being a nation. According to Cunningham, Guru Nanak had initiated the separation of his followers from Hindu "idolatry" and Muslim "superstition", whilst Guru Gobind Singh laid the foundation for a "distinct political existence and inspired them with the desire of being socially free and nationally independent", with this being realized and lived according to the author through the foundation of Ranjit Singh's polity. Cunningham described a pre-modern Sikh nationhood of being bound by the common Khalsa and a shared connection to the Sikh guru. Max Arthur Macauliffe in the late 19th century believed that the Sikhs were full of merits and at-risk of being absorbed by Hinduism, thus they needed colonial protection to safeguard their unique sense of identity.

The British Indian military promoted a standardized Khalsa identity to its Sikh recruits, as it highly favoured Khalsa Sikhs. All Sikh recruits had to be baptized into the Khalsa order through the '' khande-di-pahul'' initiation ceremony. The Sikh soldiers had to follow the Khalsa dress code and observe to Sikh customs. A granthi and gurdwara was attached to each Sikh regiment. Even British officers of Sikh soldiers sometimes wore turbans and wore the Sikh dressing colours, even paying respect to the Guru Granth Sahib. This British emphasis on Sikhism allowed for the Sikhs to become a hegemonic force. David Petrie states:

Khalistan movement

Some segments of the Sikh community advocate for an independent state called Khalistan.

Administration

''Parganas'', '''ilaqa'', and ''ta'alluqa'' administrative divisions of Sikh polities tended to much smaller scale in-size compared to the Mughal administrative system and more numerous. An example of this is the Gujranwala district, which consisted of twenty-six ta'alluqas during Sikh-rule but three or four parganas during Mughal-rule. An explanation of this is when Sikhs occupied formerly Mughal-controlled territory, they divvied up the Mughal parganas amongst the Sikh ''sardars''. A subdivision of a ''pargana'' or ''ta'alluqa'' was a ''tappa'' or ''topes''. Sikh-rule over Kashmir led to the establishment of four new Kashmiri parganas. The Mughal pargana was comparable in-nature to the Sikh ta'alluqa. At the ta'alluqa-level, the Mughal office of the '''amil'' was comparable to the Sikh office of the ''kardar''. The basis of revenue administration came from the positions of the ''muqaddam'', ''chaudhari'', and the ''qanungo''.

The Sikh polities did not made radical changes to the pre-existing system but rather made slight changes, which do make them discernible from their predecessors. Whilst in main areas during the Mughal-period the ''zabt'' method was predominant, during Sikh-rule it was the ''ghallabakhshi'' and ''kankut'' that were dominant. However, the most dominant systems of assessment and collection during Sikh-rule were the ''batai'' and ''kankut'', however the ''zabt'' method was employed in some areas. Outside of main areas, older methods continued unabated for the most part. The ''ijara'' practice became popularized during Sikh-rule but this method led to lower shares of produce being received by the state due to lower rates of assessment.

The '' jagirs'' bestowed by Sikh states were similar to the ''mansabdari jagirs'' that were granted by the Mughals. The ''dharmarth'' grants issued by Sikh states were similar to the ''madad-i-ma'ash'' grants of the Mughals. A key difference however was the proportion of revenue alienated by the way of jagir was much smaller during Sikh-rule in-comparison to Mughal-rule. However, the proportion of revenue alienated by the way of ''dharmarth'' was much larger during Sikh-rule compared to the predecessor Mughals. Another difference was that the proportion of hereditary jagirs was larger during Sikh-rule.

The three classes in-relation to land tenures was the same between Mughal and Sikh-rule:

# Peasant proprietor – the most important position
# Superior owner (''zamindar'' or '' ta'alluqdar'')
# Tenant

During Sikh-rule, the position of the peasant proprietor improved in-relation to the ta'alluqdar whilst the position of the tenant improved in-relation to the other two classes above it. Sikh ruling classes received a relatively smaller share of surplus land revenue in-comparison to their Mughal counterparts, with the revenue during Sikh-rule being distributed to many sardars and rajas (with both being relatively equal in importance). Thus, the peasant proprietor and tenant classes were able to enjoy much of the produce they produced. During the reign of Ranjit Singh of Lahore State, there were no instances of agricultural crises.

List of historical Sikh states and dynasties

The following list enumerates historical Sikh states, empires, and dynasties in chronological order, ordered by their establishment year:

See also

* List of monarchs of Punjab

Notes

References

{{Sikhism

Sikh politics
Former countries in Indian history