Ajit Singh Sandhawalia was a Sikh chieftain from the Sandhawalia Jat clan who assassinated Sher Singh, the ruler of the Sikh Empire, on 15 September 1843.[1]
Biography
Ajit Singh was the son of Basava Singh Sandhawalia, a sardar from Rajasansi.
After the assassination of Nau Nihal Singh, the Sandhawalia clan supported Chand Kaur to become the ruler.[1] But when Sher Singh forced Chand Kaur to abdicate the throne, the Sandhawalias felt cheated and refused to accept his rule.[2] The Sandhawalias were banished from the Khalsa empire and they fled to Calcutta in British India.[3]
British civil servant George Russell Clerk convinced Sher Singh to let the Sandhawalias enter the empire again. Sher Singh welcomed Ajit Singh back with open arms.[2]
Sher Singh's assassination
Ajit Singh killed Sher Singh after asking him to inspect a new shotgun. Ajit Singh then pulled the trigger[4] and then killed the wounded Sher Singh with his sword by cutting off his head.[1]
After assassinating Sher Singh, Ajit Singh and his uncle, Lahina Singh, escaped and went on to assassinate Dhian Singh, the wazir of Sikh empire.[1][4]