Suket State was one of the princely states of India during the period of the British Raj. The capital of the state was Pangna. Its last ruler signed the accession to the Indian Union on 15 April 1948. Formerly it belonged to the States of the Punjab Hills and currently, it is part of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The present-day Mandi district was formed with the merger of the two princely states of Mandi and Suket.
History According to tradition the predecessor state was founded about 765Princely states of India by Bira Sen (Vir Sen), claimed to be a son of a Sena dynasty King of Bengal, however such an early Sena Dynasty is not known. The early history of Suket was marred by constant warfare against other principalities, especially against the Kingdom of Kullu. At the time of Raja Bikram Sen, Kullu was under the overlordship of Suket State and was reduced to paying tribute to Suket. Raja Madan Sen's reign was the golden age of Suket, when its ruler reduced into submission the neighboring smaller states. During the reign of Raja Udai Sen Suket came under the influence of the Mughal Empire who were content with merely exacting tribute.
At the time of Raja Bikram Sen II, Sukket survived the invasion of the Gurkhas of Nepal (1803 to 1815) and the ensuing brief period of Sikh dominance thanks to the Raja's diplomatic skills. In 1845, when war broke out between the Sikhs and the British, the Rajas of Suket and Mandi took the side of the British, signing a Treaty of Alliance in Bilaspur in 1846. In the same year a sanad was granted to Raja Ugar Sen II confirming him and his heirs in the possession of the Suket territories.Mark Brentnall, ed. The Princely and Noble Families of the Former Indian Empire: Himachal Pradesh. p. 94
The family goddess (kuldevi) or hut devi of the Rajas of Suket is at Jaidevi (known as rajrajeswari maa kamaksha). which is about 8 miles from Sundarnagar. All religious ceremonies in the royal family, e.g., Jarolan (hair-cutting ceremony), zanarbandi (the ceremony of investment with the sacred thread), etc., are performed at Jaidevi in the temple of the goddess. The Raja goes in a procession to the temple and offers bhel to the goddess on the occasion of these ceremonies.
Rulers The rulers of Suket bore the title Raja. The clan name of the royal lineage was 'Suketi' or 'Suketr'.B. R. Beotra, ed. Gazetteer of the Suket State. (1927) +NamePortraitReignReference(s)Raja Dip Senca.1590 – ca.1620Raja Shyam Senca.1620 – ca.1650Raja Ram Senca.1650 – ca.1663Raja Jit Senca.1663 – 1721Raja Garur Sen1721–1748Raja Bhikam Sen1748–1762Raja Ranjit Sen1762–1791Raja Bikram Sen II1791–1838Raja Ugar Sen II1838–1876Raja Rudra Sen1876 – Apr 1878Raja Arimardan Sen1878–1879Raja Dasht Nikandan Sen29 Mar 1879 – 27 May 1908Raja Bhim Sen27 May 1908 – 12 Oct 1919Raja Lakshman Sen13 Oct 1919 – 15 Aug 1947 Demographics + Religious groups in Suket State (British Punjab province era)Religiousgroup19011911192119311941 Hinduism 54,005 54,268 53,625 57,616 69,974 Islam 665 587 659 733 884 Sikhism 6 71 44 44 234 Christianity 0 2 0 1 0 Buddhism 0 0 0 14 0 Jainism 0 0 0 0 0 Zoroastrianism 0 0 0 0 0 Judaism 0 0 0 0 0 Others 0 0 0 0 0 Total population 54,676 54,928 54,328 58,408 71,092
See also Punjab States Agency Political integration of India Lalit Sen Hari Sen kamksha Rulers of Suket and Mandi
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