Ajit Singh Palit

Ajit Singh Palit (died 18 January 1725) was an early Sikh sectoral leader and adopted son of Mata Sundari, the widow of Guru Gobind Singh. He maintained himself as a pretender of guruhood for twelve years. His followers were known as the Jit Malias.

Early life Ajit Singh was the adopted son of Mata Sundari, who adopted him from the household of a Delhite goldsmith because he bore a resemblance to her martyred son Sahibzada Ajit Singh. Ajit Singh Palit was married to a girl named Tara Bai belonging to Burhanpur. After the death of Guru Gobind Singh, Ajit Singh was recognized as the heir of the guru by Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah, who bestowed a khill'at upon Ajit Singh Palit on 30 October 1708 as a mark of condolence for his adopted father's death. While Bahadur Shah was in Punjab in 1710 to deal with Banda's rebellion, he met with Ajit Singh Palit via Chhatrasal on 26 September 1710, where Ajit Singh was given a robe of honour. However, shortly after on 27 December 1710, the emperor requested Kar-talab Khan to spy on Ajit Singh. On 1 June 1711, Ajit Singh was transferred to the camp of Sarbarah Khan. Then on 30 December 1711, the emperor conferred the jagir of Guru Chakk (Amritsar) upon Ajit Singh to counterbalance the influence of Banda Singh Bahadur while the Khalsa Sikhs were under heavy government persecution. A samadh shrine dedicated to Hathi Singh can be found near Gurdwara Bari Sangat in Burhanpur.