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A Ranghar Rajput landlord converted to Islam, belonged to the village
of Mandiali, 8 km south of Amritsar. He was appointed kotwal of
Amritsar by Zakariya Khan, the Mughal governor of Lahore (1726-45),
after the death of Qazi 'Abdur-Rahman who had met his end at the
hands of the Sikhs. Masse Khan's specific charge was not to allow
Sikhs to visit the Harimandar or have a dip in the tank around it.
He stationed himself in the Harimandar, the sanctum sanctorum in
the middle of the sarovar, the sacred pool. There he caroused and
indulged in revelry with women of ill repute.
Most of the fighting bands of Sikhs had already been driven out
by Zakariya Khan's drastically harsh measures to seek refuge in
hills and deserts outside the central Punjab, and Massa had a free
rein until the news of the sacrilege reached the jatha or band of
Sardar Shiam Singh camping in jaipur, in Rajasthan. Matab Singh,
one of the jatha, vowed to avenge the desecration of the holy Harimandar
and, accompanied by another brave warrior, Sukkha Singh, he forthwith
left for Amritsar. The two, finding all approaches to the city strongly
guarded, took recourse to a stratagem. Disguised as revenue officials
come to deposit their tax collections, they entered the Harimandar,
cut off Massa's head, and made good their escape before the Mughal
soldiers knew what had happened. This occurred on 11 August 1740.
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