Sardar Rai Singh

Sardar Rai Singh (born. 1738), was the only son of the famous Shaheed Bhai Mehtab Singh (d. 1745), a Bhangu Jatt, of village Meerankot, in Amritsar District of Punjab, who along with Shaheed Bhai Sukha Singh (d. 1752), beheaded the notorious Chaudhary Massa Ranghar, a chieftain, of Mandiala, village, near Amritsar, to revenge the beadbhi, of Darbar Sahib at Amritsar.

Aqil Dass Jandiala, the government informer told the Governer, "Sukha Singh and Mehtab Singh are the persons who have taken away Massa Ranghar's head. They are living in the deserts of Bikaner. Sukha Singh is not married, but Mehtab Singh's wife and seven years old Son, Rai Singh are living at Meerankot whom he has left in the care of Natha Khaira a Jatt headman (Lambardar) of village before going." Hearing this, the Governer said to Commander Nur Din, "Take the army to Meerankot immediately and bring Mehtab Singh here. If he is not there bring his son with you." At the demand of the Commander, Natha Khaira did not hand over Rai singh to him but preferred to fight and attain martyrdom along with his son, nephew and two servants to save his friend's son. During the skirmish Rai singh was badly wounded and left for dead but he later recovered.

Sardar Rai Singh, after the conquest, of Sirhind in 1764, by the Sikh Misl's of Punjab, joined the Karora Singha Misl, and left his native village of Meerankot in the Majha, to gain, territory in the Malva region of Punjab. He gained possession of some villages, in Ludhiana District, He made the village of Bhari, near Sirhind, his HQ, His son Rattan Singh Bhangu (d. 1846), the famous Sikh Historian, of the Sikh period, . Later the descendants of the Sardar Rai Singh, after the fall of the Sikh Kingdom in 1849, were made the Sikh Sardars, of some villages, and given Jagirs, by the British.

Rattan Singh Bhangu being a member of the ruling Sikh aristocracy, took upon himself to prove to the British the glory of the Sikh rise to the power in Punjab and the complete legitimacy of Sikh domination. He was requested by Captain Murray, Agent to the Governor-General, to write the history of Sikhs, which he did under the title of the Prachin Panth Parkash.