Seeing so much support for his nephew, Dulla’s uncle Jalaluddin, got envious and complained to Akbar about the mischievous Dulla. In the meantime, Dulla kidnapped two of Akbar’s wives who were going for the Haj pilgrimage. This infuriated Akbar and he ordered the immediate capture or killing of Dulla and the safe release of his queens. A huge army was sent for the task, and Dulla would not binge. People of that area wanted to save Dulla and tried to distract the army; so much so that one girl tried to lure the army chief.
Some believe this story is only the folk tales of Punjab whose historical documents do not exist nor match the facts. Abdullah was born in 1547 while Salim in 1569, it was just a peasant revolt against the new taxation of Todarmal for which Abdullah’s father and grandfather fought against the Mughals. After him, Abdullah also fought a guerrilla war against the Mughals. They used to attack the Mughals’ convoys and loot and distribute them among the poor. Because of this, the Mughal court had declared him a dacoit. The end for Bhatti came in 1599 when he was hanged in Lahore.
Continuing the glory of their ancestors, Dullah Bhatti became the rebel leader of the revolting tribes of Bars of Punjab and resisted Mughal rule for decades. Mughal authority in Punjab became so weak that Akbar had to shift the capital from Agra to Lahore to personally oversee the Mughal campaign against the revolting Bhattis of Sandal Bar. Anyway, Dulla fought bravely and for once the Mughal army had to call for reinforcements because the rebels and the public support were too hot to handle. Dulla’s son was killed in the war. Dulla was deceitfully captured and brought to the emperor’s court in Delhi. He was hanged to death. Ultimately, though, Akbar prevailed, the Mughals captured and beheaded Dullah publicly in the main Bazar area of Lahore.
