Melgiri Pandit (Devanagari: मेलगिरी पण्डित, Kannada: ಮೇಲ್ಗಿರಿ ಪಂಡಿತ್) was a Sardar (Minister, Count) in the imperial court of Chhatrapati (Emperor) Sambhaji of the Maratha Empire.[1] Sambhaji, the eldest son and successor to Chhatrapati Shivaji, reigned from his father's death in 1681 to his execution at the hands of Mughal (Mongol) Emperor Aurangzeb in 1689.
A Brahmin Pandit hailing from the namesake village of Melgiri near the modern-day Maharashtra-Karnataka border (previously under Shivaji's capital Satara, now under Solapur district),[2] Sardar Pandit is remembered for his military leadership at the Siege of Bijapur during the War of 27 years, the longest recorded military engagement in the history of India.[3]
Most notably, Sardar Pandit successfully led the Maratha ground forces at Bijapur in 1685, pushing the Mughal (Mongol) forces (under Generals Ruhulla Khan and Qasim Khan) back to their base camp at Ahmednagar. The following year (1686), Bijapur fell to the Mughals due to the surrender of Maratha ally Sultan Sikandar Adil Shah. However, these initial territorial losses were recovered and the War of 27 years was eventually won by the Maratha Empire in 1707.[4]
On account of continued hostilities with Mughals in the region, the descendants of Melgiri Pandit migrated southwest to Ron, Karnataka (formerly D-ron-apur) in modern-day Gadag District. The Melgiri-Ron (Melgiri of Ron) clan currently resides across central North Karnataka, most concentrated in Dharwad District, Gadag District and Haveri District.