Faridkot is named after The Great Sufi Saint Sheikh Farid whose verses are mentioned in Shri Guru Granth Sahib Ji!

Faridkot is a small city and a municipal council in Faridkot district in the state of Punjab, India. It’s a division with headquarter at Faridkot consists of three Districts Faridkot, Bathinda and Mansa. There are 8 Sub Divisions, 8 Tehsils and 9 Sub-Tehsils within these Districts.Total area of the District is 1475.70 Sq. K.M.
Prior to independence large part of the district was under the princely rule of Maharaja of Faridkot and later it became part of the Patiala & East Punjab States Union (PEPSU) in 1948. Faridkot was carved out as a separate district on 7 August 1972 out of the areas of Bathinda District (Faridkot Tehsil) and Firozpur District (Moga and Muktsar Tehsils). However in November 1995, the Faridkot District was trifurcated when two of its subdivisions viz Muktsar and Moga were given the status of independent districts.

It has been named after the great Sufi Saint Baba Sheik Fariduddin Ganjshakar, whose verses are mentioned in Guru Granth Sahib the holy book of Sikh religion.In 13th century, this town was founded by Raja Mokalsi, the grandson of Rai Munj, a Bhatti Chief of Rajasthan and named Mokalhar after his name. A famous Sufi Saint Hazrat Baba Sheikh Farid happened to pass through this town during the same time. Baba Farid was captured by the soldiers of Raja Mokalsi and put to bonded labour for the ongoing construction work of the fort at Faridkot. The basket full of earth while being carried by Baba Farid was seen floating over his head. On seeing this miracle, Raja touched the feet of Baba Farid and begged pardon. Baba Farid pardoned the Raja and meditated at a place near the fort, where he penanced for forty days. From that day the name of Mokalhar was changed to Faridkot.The place, where he stayed, is still called, ‘Tilla Baba Farid’, and ‘Baba Sheikh Farid Aagman Purb Mela’ is celebrated each year in the month of September, commemorating his arrival in the city.

The main crops of the city are wheat, paddy and cotton. Industries of the town include cotton handling, from ginning to baling, as well as manufacture of machine tools, sewing machines.

Faridkot State The history of the Faridkot District pertaining to the ancient period has been traced to the Indus Valley Civilization. A few sites explored in the Moga Tehsil(Now a separate District) link it with Indus Valley Civilization sites explored in the Rupnagar District. A vast area, including the present area of Faridkot District was under the influence of Indus Valley Civilization.

Princely flag of Faridkot The ruling dynasty of Faridkot State claimed descent from Rawal Jaisal, who founded Jaisalmer in Rajasthan in 1156. The town was founded in the 16th century by his descendant Bhallan of the Burai Jats.The ancestor of the Faridkot principality, Bhallan was an ardent follower of 6th Sikh Guru Har Gobind. He helped the Guru Har Gobind ji in the battle of Mehraj. He died issueless in 1643. Kapura, who was a nephew of Bhallan, succeeded him. Kapura founded the town of Kotkapura in 1661. Nawab Kapura was the Chaudhry of eighty-four villages. He was a Sikh but did not want to earn the ire of the Mughals and help Guru Gobind Singh Ji and fight with Mughals. The famous last battle of Muktsar (Khidrane Di Dhaab) now a historic town, happened after Nawab Kapura declined Guru Gobind Singh’s request to use his fort to fight Mughal Army. Otherwise the last war between Mughals and Guru Gobind Singh Ji was destined to happen at Kotkapura. Guru ji moved from Kotkapura to Dhilwan Kalan from there to Talwandi sabo via Guru ki Dhab. However, later in the battle of Muktsar in 1705, Nawab Kapuray, helped Guru Gobind Singh Ji in an underhand manner. Kapura was slain by Isa Khan Manj in 1708. He had three sons named Sukhia, Sema and Mukhia. Mukhia killed Isa Khan and took control of the entire area. Sema was also killed in this battle in 1710. Kapura’s elder son Sukhia again came into power in 1720.

Faridkot State Stamp A dispute between grandsons of Kapura (sons of Sukhia) led to the division of the state in 1763. The older brother, Sardar Jodh Singh Brar, retained control of Kotkapura, and his younger brother, Sardar Hamir Singh Brar, was given Faridkot.

The state was captured in 1803 by Ranjit Singh, but was one of the Cis-Sutlej states that came under British influence after the 1809 Treaty of Amritsar. During the Sikh wars in 1845, Raja Pahar Singh aided the British, and was rewarded with an increase of territory. The state had an area of and its 642 square miles (1,660 km2), and a population of 124,912 in 1901. It was bounded on the west and northeast by the British district of Ferozepore, and on the south by the state of Nabha. The last Ruler of Faridkot was Lt. HH Farzand-i-sadaat Nishan Hazrat-i-kaisar-i-hind Raja Sir Harindar Singh Brar Bans Bahadur. Before partition there was majority Muslim population in Faridkot. There are many mosques in Faridkot which are taken care of by Sikh villagers.

Faridkot has played a leading role in the politics of the state of Punjab with a number of chief ministers and even a president hailing from the area. Although the separation of Moga and Muktsar left this district considerably smaller, the area remains an important political arena.

~ Source: www.faridkottimes.tv