History

On 10 March 1557, Akbar received the news that at the instigation of Mulla Abdulla Sultanpuri, Sikandar Sur had descended upon the plains of Jalandhar Doab and had started collecting the revenue. On 17 December 1557, Akbar received the news that at the instigation of Mulla Abdulla Sultanpuri, Sikandar Sur had descended upon the plains of Jalandhar Doab and had started collecting the revenue. On 17 December 1557, the imperial forces advanced through Jalandhar to the Shiwalik Hills and encamped at Dasua in the Hoshiarpur District and moved further to Nurpur. The hill Rajas, who had sided with Sikandar Sur, deserted him and submitted to Akbar.

After Bairam Khan was defeated by the imperial forces at Gunachaur, he went to Talwara, the capital of Raja Ganesh. There was a great battle fought between the imperialist and Bairam Khan’s troops. The royal troops besieged the fortress at Talwara. Bairam Khan after a brief resistence surrendered at Hajipur in October 1560 and threw himself at the mercy of the Emperor Akbar. He was pardoned by the emperor at Hariana and thereafter, he left for Mecca.

With the downfall of the Mughal Empire and the rise of the Sikh power, the district saw its most stirring scenes. The history of the Sikh Gurus in the Hoshiarpur District mainly revolves round the towns of Kiratpur and Anandpur Sahib, whichformed part of it before the reorganisation of the Punjab in November 1966.

Banda Bahadur was commissioned by Guru Gobind Singh from Deccan to the Punjab in d1708 to punish those who had persecuted the Sikhs and executed his father and innocent children. Banda Bahadur used the Jalandhar Doab as the base from which he led expeditions against the Mughal forces. The Jalandhar Doab remained centre of his exploits till 1711.

As sirhind has been captured, and Banda was carrying his activities far and wide, the Sikhs in the Jalandhar Doab felt that their day of deliverance had arrived, They ousted the Muslim officials and in their place appointed the Sikhs, and sent a parvana to Shamas Khan, the Faujdar of the Jalandhar Doab, to effect certain reforms and hand over his treasures personally to the Khalsa. The Faujdar appealed to the Muslims of the Doab for a jehad against these infidels, and about one lakh Muslim collected and marched towards Sultanpur, the capital of the Doab where about seventy-five thousand Sikhs HAD COLLECTED. An urgent call at this juncture was sent to Banda in the Gangetic Doab and he soon joined them. The Sikhs retired to Rahon. The Muslims chased them, and the Sikhs were besieged. But in the darkness of the night , they escaped, and the next morning, seeing that Shamas Khan had retired to his capital, they attacked the Muslims in the fort suddenly and after a bloody battle, they drove them out on 12 October 1710. Cosequently, Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur were captured by the Sikhs without much effort and they became now masters of the Jalandhar Doab.

The district was annexed by the British at the close of the First Anglo Sikh War. John Lawrence became the first Commissioner of the trans-Satluj States in March 1846, and the division was administered by him in direct correspondence with the Supreme Government until 1848, when the Commissioner was made subordinate to the Resident at Lahore.

The Great Uprising of 1857 did not effect the Hoshiarpur District. However, a number of precautionary measures were taken by the British authorities.

Baba Ram singh founded Namdhari Movement, popularly known as Kuka Movement on 12 April 1857 with its headquarters at village Bhaini Sahib in Ludhiana District. In the beginning, the district of Sialkkot (Pakistan), Amritsar, Hoshiarpur and Ludhiana formed the chief centres of Namdhari activities, but later on their activities spread to other districts as well.

The economic hardships and privations perpetrated by nature produced widespread resentment against the British authorities ‘the political Temperature’ roses high in the first two months of 107. Many meetings were held at Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, lahore, Rawalpindi and other places. In the Punjab during the year, organised public meetings and published articles on the economic discontentment prevailing in the jprovince. The deportation and arrest of Lala Lajpat Rai on 9 May 1907, without any substantial charges made against him stirred up the revolutionary movement, particularly in the Punjab including the district of Hoshiarpur.

The news of Lala Lajpat Rai’s release in November 1907 was received with great excitement and relief in the political circles of the Punjab. This news was first published in ‘The Tribune’. A holiday was at once declared at the D.A.V. college. Lahore; Arya School at Hoshiarpur was closed for two days; school buildings were illiminated and sweetmeats were distributed among the students.

The Tilik a newspaper published from Hoshiarpur was prosecuted for publishing a ghazal by ‘Ram’.which appeared in the issue of 6 May 1909. The press at which the paper was printed was also confiscated on 30 June 1909. The most important device was the prosecution of the press which created discontentment among the people of the district. But these measures could not curb the revolutionary activities of the people.

Formation of ghadar Party with its headquarters at San Francisco (U.S.A.) to liberate India by force. The Executive Committee of the Movement included Munshi Ram and Pandit Jagat Ram of Hariana of the Hoshiarpur district. Despite the strict measures adopted by the British against entry of the ghadrities, many of them reached Punjab and visited the Hoshiarpur district where they carried out their revolutionary activities.

The Defence of India Act, 1915 was passed by the British authorities. The British adopted legal measures to control the entry of the ghadarities into India and supressed them with a heavy hand. A large number of them were arrested and tried by special tribunals constituted under the Act. The list of revolutionaries belonging to the Hoshiarpur district, tried and convicted, is given in the Appendix 11 at the end of this chapter.

Formation of shiromani Gurdawara Parbandhak Committee on 15 November 1920 for undertaking the management of sikh shrines. As at other places of the Province, a big public meeting was organised at Hoshiarpur on 23 February 1921 under the auspices of the District Sikh League to protest the Nankana Sahib Holocast which occurred on 20 February. Gandhiji started the Non-cooperation Movement in alliance with Khilafat leaders to bring the Bring the British administration to a standstill and to compel it to grant freedom to the people of India. The programme included the boycott of the elections and legislatures, law courts, Government schools and colleges and foreign goodsand renunciation of government schools and colleges and foreign goods and renunciation of Government titles. Gandhiji was delighted to see hand-weaving cloth factories at Hoshiarpur. He congratulated the people of the city on establishing such factories. His message reached the craftsmen of the Province. Two spinning wheels made of ebony and skillfully designed were presented to him. Gandhiji was pleased to find Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and Hariana ( Hoshiarpur District), as centres of the spinning wheel.

The District Congress committee, Hoshiarpur arranged a public meeting at Hoshiarpur on 23 July 1920 in favour of Non-Co-operation Movement. It was attended by a large number of delegated from all over the district. A meeting of the district conference was held at Hoshiarpur non 30 and 31 October 1920. A large number of delegated and members from all parts of the district attended the conference. The people present at the conference signed in favour of swadeshi and foreign goods boycott and pledges were taken to remove begar and untouchability.

The Babbar Akali Movement was mainly concentrated in the Hoshiarpur and Jalandhar districts. In these two districts, the movement was regarded as an off-shoot of the combined grievances of the Kamagata Maru incident, the Jallianwala Bagh tragedy, the Nankana Sahib tragedy and Guru Ka Bagh episode.

As at other places of the province, a big public meeting was organised at Hoshiarpur on 323 February 1921 under the auspices of the District Sikh League to protest against the Nankana Sahib Holocast, which occurred on 20 February. The delegates vehemently condemned the atrocities perpetrated by the British authorties.

In the spring of 1922, it was decided to intimidate all those, who were prepared to assist Government officers with information. Razors were purchased at Jalandhar contonment for the purpose of cutting the noses and ears of Jholichuks. A meeting under the auspices of the sikh league was held at Hoshiarpur on 25 March 1921 and sikh community fully endorsed the Non-co-operation Movement of Gandhiji. As all over the Province, complete hartal was observed at Hoshiarpur on 20 March 1922 as a protest against the conviction of gandhiji. In the evening at a big meeting, foreign clothes were discarded and bonfire made of them.

A meeting of the district congress committee was organised at Hoshiarpur on 2 July 1922 in support of the civil Disobedience Movement. Lala Ram Lal Jali of Urmar( Hoshiarpur), a member of Indian National Service was convicted and sentenced to one year’s imprisonment for carrying of Non-Co-operation Movement and anti Government propoganda under Section 108 CLA Act.

Swadeshi bazars were organised at Hoshiarpur to exhibit and supply nall sorts of cloth and other articles manufactured in India to bring about an effective boycott of foreign goods in March 1930.

The fourth session of the Doaba Political Conference was held at Mukerian in the Hoshiarpur District on 28 March 1930. Delegated from Hoshiarpur and Dasua, attended the Conference and assured full support to Gandhiji for the success of the civil Disobedience Movement.

The cloth merchants organised a meeting at Hoshiarpur on 15 April 1930 and solemnly resolved not to place any order for foreign cloth. The Salt Satyagraha commenced at Hoshiarpur. The volunteers disobeyed Salt Laws and proceeded to different parts of the district to propagate Civil disobedience. The British suthorities arrested Gandhiji and thousands of other persons who favoured civil disobedience. Lala Jamna Das, a veteran leader of Hoshiarpur was arrested and jailed three times for encouraging civil disobedience and for inciting people of the district to rise against the British authorities.

Mahatama Gandhi was arrested on 5 May 1930 and there was a nation wide hartal to protest against his arrest. A large number of people, who went on strike in the Hoshiarpur District were arrested. The schools at Miani in the Dasua Tahsil of Hoshiarpur District were closed down and protest meetings were held.

The Gandhi Day was observed at Hoshiarpur by the Provincial Congress Committee and protest meetings were held at Dasua, Gardhiwala and Hariana. The delegated also organized a similar meeting on 7 June 1930 at village Khanpur in the district. The police committed atrocities at Sirhala Kalan, tahsil Garhshankar of the district and arrested Sardar Harnam Singh, President of the District Congress Committee Hoshiarpur.

Under the Gandhi Irwin Pact, dated 6 March 1931, Gandhiji alongwith all the political prisoners was released and the Civil disobedience Movement was called off.