Jai Singh Kanhaiya

Jai Singh was born in the village of Kahna, 21 km southwest of Lahore.[1] His father, Khushal Singh, was a farmer and also sold wood and hay in Lahore and his family had humble origins. He was initiated into the Khalsa by Nawab Kapur Singh and joined the jatha of Amar Singh Kingra.[1] In 1759, his wife Desan Kaur (who was the widow of Jhanda Singh) gave birth to his only son and heir Gurbaksh Singh.[2]

Jai Singh took control of a part of Riarki comprising the district of Gurdaspur and upper portions of Amritsar. His headquarters shifted from his wife's village at Sohian, 15 km from Amritsar to Batala to Mukerian.[1] He had territories on both sides of the rivers Beas and Ravi. Qazi Nur Muhammad, a historian, wrote in 1765 that Jai Singh Kanheya had extended his territory up to Parol, which was 70 km southeast of Jammu and that he was allied with Jassa Singh Ramgarhia because they shared the territory of Batala.[1] The hill chiefs of Nurpur, Datarpur and Siba became his tributaries. In 1774, Jai Singh and Haqiqat Singh built a bazaar in Amritsar called the Katra Kanheyan. In October 1778 he collaborated with Mahan Singh Sukerchakia and Jassa Singh Ahluwalia to defeat Jassa Singh Ramgarhia and exiled him to the desert regions of Hansi and Hissar.[1] In 1781, he led an expedition into Jammu with Haqiqat Singh and received a tribute from Brij Raj Dev, the ruler of Jammu.[1]