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Was born the son of Gurdit Singh who had acquired territory around
Thanesar after the conquest by Sikhs in 1764 of the Mughal province
of Sirhind. Gurdit Singh, who belonged to the same clan as Ranjit
Singh, originally came from the village of Vein Poin, about 15 km
south of Amritsar, and was a member of the Karorsinghia misl or
confederacy. In addition to his other acquisitions, Gurdit Singh
received in jagir from Maharaja Ranjit Singh the village of Baddoval,
near Ludhiana. After Gurdit Singh's death, Ajit Singh succeeded
him as ruler of the Ladva state. Ajit Singh, like his father, continued
to be an ally of Ranjit Singh in his campaigns of conquest and received
favours from him. He built a bridge over the River Sarasvad at Thanesar,
and received the title of Raja from Lord Auckland, the British governor-general
of India.
In the first Anglo-Sikh war, Ajit Singh fought on the side of the
Sikhs against the British. He along with Ranjodh Singh Majithia
crossed the Sutlej at Phillaur with a force of 8,000 men and 70
guns. In rapid marches Ajit Singh and Ranjodh Singh seized the forts
of Fatehgarh, Dharamkot, and Baddoval, and stole into Ludhiana cantonment,
setting many of the barracks on fire. In the action fought on 21
January 1846 at Baddoval, Sir Henry Smith's column was attacked
and more than 200 of his men were slain. But Ajit Singh suffered
a defeat in the action fought in Aliwal after a week (28 January)
and fled the battlefield. Ajit Singh's estates were confiscated
by the British in 1846 and he was arrested and detained at Allahabad.
He, however, contrived to escape after killing his keeper and after
long wanderings is supposed to have died in Kashmir.
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