The Panjutha, or sometimes spelt Panjootha, are found mainly in Sargodha District.
H. A Rose, the early 20th Century British ethnologist had the following to say about them:
The Panjootha are still found mainly in Shahpur, which is now known as Sargodha District.
Panjutha claim descent from Raja Dilip
The Panjutha claim descent from Raja Dilip, the Tomar Rajput ruler who is said to have founded Delhi, as such they belong to the Chandravanshi branch of Kshatriyas.
A descendent of Dilip by the name of Rai Shajrand, who lived during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, was made a commander in the Mughal army. He is said to have spent 15 years in Jhelum, and then returned to his homeland in Amritsar. His eldest son, Rai Tanwara, founded a village named after him, which is still found in Amritsar District.
Also read: History of Hanjra Jatts
A descendent of his by the name of Doli Singh, was a soldier in the army of the Sikh ruler of Punjab, Ranjit Singh. Doli Singh was given land in Sargodha. His son was Ram Das Singh, who was killed by the Chatha near Ramnagar in Gujranwala District.
His son was Sardar Ran Singh, who also a soldier in the army of Ranjit Singh, and was given land. He had five sons, Jaimal Singh, Mul Singh, Mit Singh, Radhan Singh, and Sujjan Singh.
The ‘panj-hatta’ tittle
Nadhan Singh also served in Ranjit Singh’s army, in a campaign against the Afghans impressed Ranjit Singh, who gave him the title panj hatta, or one with the five arms, someone who take five men on his own.
His descendants thus became known as the Panjhuta. The brothers Jaimal Singh, Mul Singh and Mit Singh later converted to Islam at the British conquest of the Sikh Empire in 1848.
According to the 1911 Census, there were 596 Panjootha, all in Shahpur District, almost all in Sargodha Tehsil. There are four villages where the Panjutha are a majority, Dhal, Chak Mubarak, Chawa and Salan.
A few are also found in Jalpana. In addition, there are several Panjhuta families in village Mattoo in Mandi Bahauddin District.
The notable person who belong to the Panjutha clan is Naeem Haider Panjutha who is the lawyer of PTI founder and former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
