Uday Singh was appointed to chal-lenge Raja Kesari Chand who was leading
the assault at Anandpur, and who had sworn to defeat Guru Gobind Singh.
Bachittar Singh (see his section) was successful with his very first blow
as he drove his nagani into the head of the mad elephant that was ad-vancing
menacingly towards the fort. The animal became furious with rage and turned
back, trampling many of the hill chiefs' soldiers to death.
When Raja Kesari Chand saw the elephant trampling soldiers of his army, he
started to flee the battlefield. Meanwhile, Uday Singh joined the battle and
continued to advance towards Kesari Chand. He reached him and challenged,
"Kesari Chand! You are a great jackal; why are you fleeing like a coward
from the battlefield. I won't let you run away. Come face to face with me."
Uday Singh's taunts infuriated Kesari Chand; he discharged an arrow which
lodged in Uday Singh's saddle cloth. Uday Singh
dashed forward and attacked Kesari Chand with a long spear. He pierced
his neck with his spear and threw him off his horse. Then Uday Singh jumped
from his horse and, with one stroke of his sword, slashed Kesari Chand's
head off. Poising the fallen head on his spear, Uday Singh galloped his
horse towards the Anandpur fort. Seeing the fall of Kesari
Chand, the Sikhs rallied, cutting off the hill army's foot soldiers that
remained.
After the fall of their leader, the hill chiefs' allied army, now leaderless, became disor-ganised. The Sikh warriors fell upon them and devastated them in hand to hand combat. In this retreat, Raja Bhup Chand of Handur, a hill chief, was severely wounded by the brave Saheb Singh.
On the following day, Ghumand Chand directed the efforts of his troops against Anandpur, but the Sikhs were fully prepared, and a fierce battle was fought. At the end of the day, Ghumand Chand, who was withdrawing from the battlefield towards his tent, was mortally wounded by a bullet. All the hill chiefs became disheartened and demoralized upon the death of Ghumand Chand. After the massacre of so many of their men, they abandoned much equip-ment and took to their heels in the dead of night. The hill chiefs, who had bragged boastfully that they would defeat and kill Guru Gobind Singh Ji and his Sikhs, had tasted the steel of the Khalsa.
