Shahpur (Punjab)
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Shahpur (alternatively Shāhpur or Shahapur) is a city located in the west of Punjab province, Pakistan. It lies on the Jhelum River. Its old name was Rampur and it had a majority Hindu population until the 17th century. The name changed after the arrival of a Sufi saint Shah Shams Sherazi from Delhi.
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[edit] History
[edit] Shah Shams Sherazi
Shah Shams Sherazi was the descendant of Shiite Imam Jaffer Sadiq.
He was the son of Sher Ali, whose mausoleum is in Delhi. Sher Ali had come to India with the Mughal Emperor Humayun. In fact, Humayun moved to Iran seeking help to regain his empire when he was overthrown by Farid Khan, popularly known as Sher Shah Suri. After a special prayer for his success, Sher Ali and his two sons, Shah Shams and Jalal Shah, were asked to accompany Humayun to Delhi. On their way, they were informed that Sher Shah Suri died. Without any bloodshed in the battleground, Humayun took over and regained the power. He gifted a piece of land to Sher Ali and offered his son, Shah Shams, the marriage proposal of a girl from the Mughal family. Shah Shams accepted the proposal.
In later years, the couple was blessed with five sons. Shah Shams and his family left Delhi and crossed the Jhelum River to settle in Rampur (presently known as Shahpur). While his brother Jalal Shah moved to a deserted area in Afghanistan and lived there. Jalalabad, now a city in Afghanistan, was named after him.
[edit] Shahpur District
In 1893, during the British Raj, the district of Shahpur was created - the city of Shahpur was the capital. In 1914 the District Headquarters were moved from Shahpur to Sargodha - although the district continued to be know as Shahpur. In 1960 however, the district of Sargodha was created and Shahpur became one of its Tehsils[1]
During their rule the British had a regular census of their Indian empire, recording amongst other things religion and caste, the following table lists the percentage of the population belonging to each faith[2] .
| Year | Hindu | Sikh | Muslim | Others | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1885 | 17.2 | ... | 82.8 | ... | 100 |
| 1868 | 14.5 | 0.9 | 82.8 | 1.8 | 100 |
| 1881 | 14.0 | 1.1 | 84.9 | ... | 100 |
| 1891 | 13.4 | 2.0 | 84.6 | ... | 100 |
[edit] References
- ^ HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF DISTRICT SARGODHA - Punjab portal
- ^ Gazetteer of the Shahpur District 1897 published by Sang-e-mee Publications page 77
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