Suraj Mal


Maharaja Suraj Mal or Sujan Singh was a Hindu Jat ruler of Bharatpur in Rajasthan, India. Under him, the Jat rule covered the present-day districts of Agra, Aligarh, Bharatpur, Dholpur, Etawa, Gurgaon, Hathras, Mainpuri, Mathura, Mewat, Meerut, Rewari, and Rohtak.
A contemporary historian had described him as "the Plato of the Jat tribe" and by a modern writer as the "Jat Odysseus", because of his "political sagacity, steady intellect and clear vision". The Jats, under Suraj Mal, overran the Mughal garrison at Agra. Suraj Mal was killed in an ambush by the Mughal Army on the night of 25 December 1763 near Hindon River, Shahadra, Delhi. In addition to the troops stationed at his forts, he had an army of 25,000 infantry and 15,000 cavalry when he died.
, a photo by William Henry Baker, c.1860.

Battle of Kumher

Mughal Emperor Alamgir II and his rebellious courtier Siraj ud-Daulah were having a factional feud. Suraj Mal had sided with Siraj. Alamgir sought the help of the Holkar Marathas of Indore. Khanderao Holkar, son of the Maharaja of Indore, Malhar Rao Holkar, laid a siege on Suraj Mal's Kumher in 1754. While inspecting the troops on an open palanquin in the battle of Kumher, Khanderao was hit and killed by a cannonball from the Bharatpur army. The siege was lifted and a treaty was signed between Jats and Marathas, which later proved helpful for Suraj Mal in consolidating his rule.

Legacy

His large cenotaph is at Kusum Sarovar, Govardhan, Uttar Pradesh. His imposing chattri is flanked on either side by two smaller chattris of his two wives, "Maharani Hansiya" and "Maharani Kishori". These memorial chattris were built by his son and successor Maharaja Jawahar Singh. The architecture and carving is in the pierced stone style and the ceiling of cenotaphs are adorned with paintings of the life of Krishna and Suraj Mal. His court poet Sūdan recorded his biography in Sujān Charitra.
Notable institutes named after him include Maharaja Surajmal Institute of Technology and Maharaja Surajmal Brij University, Bharatpur.