Previous Year Question

Jayata and Kumpa were valiant commanders of Rao Maldeo, the Rathore ruler of Marwar. Their names are particularly associated with the Battle of Giri-Sumel or Sammel fought between Sher Shah Suri and Rao Maldeo.

By the middle of the 16th century, Rao Maldeo Rathore had considerably expanded the power of Marwar. His growing strength led Sher Shah Suri to undertake a military campaign against Marwar.

The two armies confronted each other in the region of Giri and Sumel near Jaitaran in present-day Rajasthan. The decisive engagement took place in 1544 CE.

Before the battle, Sher Shah employed a strategy that caused Rao Maldeo to suspect the loyalty of some of his leading chiefs. Consequently, Maldeo withdrew from the battlefield with a part of the main army.

Despite this, Jayata and Kumpa decided to continue the battle with their troops. They offered extremely fierce resistance against the numerically much larger Afghan army.

Both Jayata and Kumpa were killed in the battle, but their resistance greatly impressed Sher Shah. Although Sher Shah emerged victorious, his army also suffered heavy losses in the engagement.

The battle is also associated with Sher Shah's famous observation that for a small amount of bajra, he had almost lost the empire of Hindustan.

Therefore, Jayata and Kumpa were associated not with Mewar, Malwa or Bundelkhand, but with Marwar.