Parshu,parshu wrote:may I take a shot at answering?ParGha wrote:SBajwa,
What was the ethnic make up of the Mughal troops garrisoning Punjab at the end of Mughal Era? Punjabi Muslims were not generally recruited into the Mughal Army
1. Large number of rajputs, mostly converts....the cricketer Vikram Rathore and the Khalistani Jagjit Singh Chohan are examples of surviving Rajput Punjabis on our side
Bajwa's description of the Mughal forces is more accurate since ParGha asked about the composition at the end of the Mughal era in Punjab. Rajputs had ceased to be a major part of the Mughal armies as early as Aurangzeb's time.
As for Punjabi Muslims claiming Rajput ancestry, this claim is doubtful, mostly used for self-glorification. Even Jinnah, who we all know was a Shia Bohra, once tried to claim that his ancestors were "Rajputs".
Punjab has a large population of Jutts, Gujjars, Ranghars, etc....during British rule many of these started claiming Rajput ancestry for self-glorification.
As you noted there are very few Rajputs in our Punjab, the same is true for Brahmins. If "large numbers" of the PMs claim Rajput ancestry why don't an equally large number claim Brahmin ancestry? For the simple reason that Rajputs represented heroism, royalty, an ancient lineage, and it was "cool" in those days to claim descent from them.