Khangars

Khangars or Khangaars are an ancient kshatriya clan of Indian origin.

They ruled large areas of Bundelkhand after the fall Chandels in 1182 A.D. Their seat of power was at Garh Kundar, a splendid fort built by Maharaja Khub Singh Khangar.

History

During Khangar rule, Bundelkhand was called as ‘Jujhauti’ implying the land of warriors.Khangars ruled Jujhauti from their capital at Garh Kundar till the middle of 14th century A.D. The story of decline of Khangar empire is a saga of sacrifices, heroism and betrayal. It is said that the daughter of last Khangar king Maan Singh, whose name was Rajkumari Kesar Dei, was very beautiful. When Mohammad bin Tughlaq, the contemporary ruler of Delhi Sultanate, came to know about the beauty of Kesar Dei, he sent a marriage proposal to Maharaja Maan Singh Khangar, with a warning of bad consequences in case of refusal. It was a totally unacceptable thing for the proud Khangars, who vowed to fight the ill-intentions of Delhi sultan till the end. Mohammad Tughlaq got very annoyed at the adamancy of Khangars and sent a large army to attack and capture Garh Kundar.A fierce battle ensued between sultan’s powerful army and brave warriors of Jujhauti. Many Khangar brave-hearts laid down their lives to save their honour, including the crown prince Bardai Singh and king Maan Singh himself. When it was known that Khangars would lose the war, Rajkumari Kesar Dei decided to jump into the holy fire and commit ‘jauhar’ along with other princesses. It was a fateful day of Chaitra month in 1347 A.D. A large pool of fire was built by the chief priest of Khangar king, and into it jumped the brave Rajkumari Kesar Dei from a high platform. After her, other princesses also committed ‘Jauhar’ (a ritual of killing oneself by jumping into the fire, committed in medieval times by kshatriya and Rajput ladies to protect their honour). A few rock inscriptions have been found in the ruins of Garh Kundar that tell the story of Kesar Dei.The folk songs of Bundelkhand mention about the courage and sacrifice of ‘Jujhauti’ women.

Origin

Khangars are a sub-clan of Arkawanshi kshatriyas of Awadh (also called Arakhs). ‘Khangar’ is derived from the word ‘Khangdhaar’, which can be broken as ‘Khang’ (meaning ‘sword’) + ‘Dhaar’ (meaning ‘to wield’). Thus, ‘Khangar’ implies ‘one who wields the sword’.

Maharaja Khet Singh

The main hero of Khangar clan was Maharaja Khet Singh, who was a friend and an associate of Prithvi Raj Chauhan. Khet Singh was with Prithavi Raj in all his ventures, including Chandel-Chauhan war and twin battles of Tarain (in 1191 A.D. and 1192 A.D.) with Muhammad Ghori.After the defeat of Chauhans in the second battle of Tarain at the hands of Turks, Khet Singh established an independent Khangar state in Bundelkhand (named as ‘Jejak Bhukti’ by the Chandels). His grandson Khub Singh built the grand fort of Kundar and named it ‘Garh Kundar’. The ruins of Garh Kundar are still standing in the Tikamgarh district of Madhya Pradesh, quietly telling the story of Khangars.On December 27 and 28, every year, a festival is held at Garh Kundar to commemorate the heroic deeds of Maharaja Khet Singh and other Khangar personalities.

Others facts

Khangars are also known by different names as Khangrot (in Rajasthan), Khengar, Khagar, Khangdhar and Rai Khangar. They also use the title ‘Mirdha’ meaning ‘the warrior’.

Subhadara Bai Rai, a brave lady of Khangar clan, actively took part in Goa revolution of 1950s against Portuguese rulers, under the banner of Congress. While leading a procession of women revolutionaries, with Indian tricolor in her hand, she was fired upon by the Portuguese soldiers. She bravely bore the bullets but didn’t let the tricolor fall down. Her bravery impressed Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru so much that he made her an important leader of the Indian National Congress. A women’s polytechnic in Sagar district of Madhya Pradesh has been named after her, by the government, to honour her.