Hazrat Ahmad — Page 10
10. HADHRAT AHMAD attacks, but in the time of his son the State was gradually so reduced so that only the village of Qadian itself-which was then like a fortress, and was encircled by a moat-remained with the family. . Eventually, through the treachery of some of its inhabitants, the village itself was captured by the Sikhs and all the members of the family, male and female, were made prisoners. After some time the. Sikhs permitted them to depart and they moved to the State of. Kapurthala, where they remained for a number of years. When. Maharaja Ranjit Singh gradually brought all the petty chiefs of the country under his sway, he restored to Ahmad's father a considerable portion of his paternal estates and he and his brothers entered the military service of the Maharaja. When the British supplanted. Sikh rule, the family jagirs were confiscated, but Ahmad's father was granted proprietary rights over the village of Qadian and was recognized as the superior landlord of two neighboring villages. . The following extract from the Punjab Chiefs by Sir Lepel Griffen and Col. Massey is relevant in this context. “In 1530, the last year of the Emperor Babar's reign, Hadi. Beg, a Mughal of Samarkand, emigrated to the Punjab and settled in the Gurdaspur District. He was a man of some learning, and was appointed Qazi or Magistrate over seventy villages in the neighborhood of Qadian, which town he is said to have founded, naming it Islampur Qazi from which Qadian has by a natural change arisen. For several generations the family held offices of responsibility under the Imperial. Government and it was only when the Sikhs became powerful that it fell into poverty. "Gul Muhammad and his son, Ata Muhammad were engaged in perpetual quarrels with the Ramgariha and Kanhaya. Misals, who held the country in the neighborhood of Qadian: and at last, having lost all his estates, Ata Muhammad retired to Begowal where, under the protection of Sardar Fateh Singh. Ahluwalia, he lived quietly for twelve years. On his death,. Ranjit Singh, who had taken possession of all the lands of the. Ramgarhia Misal, invited Ghulam Murtaza to return to Qadian and restored to him a large portion of his ancestral estates. ' "He then, with his brothers, entered the army of the