Baba Moti Ram Mehra (

fl. ''Floruit'' (; abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for "they flourished") denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indicatin ...

late 17th – early 18th century) was a devoted disciple and servant of the

Guru Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sing ...

who, disregarding the risk to his own life, managed to enter the ''Thanda Burj'' in a very dramatic manner and serve milk to the Mata Gujri and Baba Zorawar Singh and

Baba Fateh Singh Fateh Singh (Gurmukhi: ਫਤਿਹ ਸਿੰਘ ; 25 February 1699 – 12 December 1705), commonly referred to with honorifics as Baba Fateh Singh or Sahibzada Baba Fateh Singh, was the fourth and youngest son of Guru Gobind Singh. He was bor ...

, the two younger Sahibzadas (sons) of

for three nights, where they were kept under arrest by the

Mughal Mughal or Moghul may refer to: Related to the Mughal Empire * Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries * Mughal dynasty * Mughal emperors * Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia * Mughal architecture * Mug ...

Governor of Sirhind, Wazir Khan. Moti Ram was born into a Hindu family. His parents were Bholi and Hariya Ram. His uncle was Bhai Himmat Rai Ji, a member of 1st panj pyare . On December 27, 1704, the Sahibzadas were martyred and Mata Gujri also decided to leave for heavenly abode. He arranged sandal wood for their cremation. Someone told the Nawab that his servant had served those prisoners with milk and water. The Nawab ordered the arrest of Baba Moti Ram Mehra, his mother, wife, and son. He did not conceal his act and boldly told the Nawab that it was his pious duty to serve the imprisoned children and their grandmother. Hence Baba Moti Ram Mehra, along with his family, was sentenced to death by being squeezed in a Kohlu (oil press). His sacrifice was first sermonized by Baba Banda Singh Bahadur.

Memorial Gurdwara and Gate

His followers and kin of his

caste Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...

constituted the Amar Saheed Baba Moti Ram Mehra Charitable Trust. A Gurdwara known as the Memorial Baba Moti Ram Mehra stands opposite Rauza Sharif from

Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib is a Sikh gurdwara or place of worship in the city of Fatehgarh Sahib in the Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab. The gurdwara marks the 1710 conquest of the city by the Sikhs under the leadership of Banda Singh Baha ...

, which was constructed by the Trust at the place where Moti Ram Mehra was martyred by the Nawab. The land was donated by Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee. Today, Moti Ram Mehra is deeply respected by Sikhs while the Baba Moti Ram Mehra Memorial Gate was constructed by the Punjab Government in remembrance of his great sacrifices.

References

{{reflist 18th-century Indian people

Memorial Gurdwara and Gate

See also

References