Kahut - History and Origin - The Other View On The Origin of Kahut

The Other View On The Origin of Kahut

Kahuts or Kahoots are also called Koot in some districts such as the Sargodha and Mandi Bahauddin districts. In fact when some Kahoot community/tribes moved to the districts, the local people with the passage of time simplified its pronunciation to Koot/Kut/Kahout in line with their habits of making communication simple and easy. This has happened over the centuries. As like most other tribes of the area, they consider themselves and are also considered by all other people as Jats and have intermarried with all the tribes of the area.

They might not be as numerous in Sargodha and Mandi Bahauddin but they are not less important. Many of them are important in district politics and beyond. Chouhdary Ghulam Ali Kahut of Ahla is very social and important personality of the area and has been a member of the district council for Gujrat and Mandi Bahauddin and chairman of Union Council and Markiz Councils. Haji Muhammad Ashraf (Naib Tehsil Nazim Pindigheb, District Attock) is known political personality and leader of Kahoots living in Union Council Khaur of Attock district and Union Council Warwal of Chakwal district. Taj Muhammad Khan Kahut, Diplomat (Third Secretary), High Commission for Pakistan, UK. Chaudary Gul Akbar Kahoot of village Waryamal is a well known zameendar and a social figure of tehsil Chakwal and has been very instrumental in the development of the village. Subedar Amir Hussain of village Janga is a prominent personality, who took a major part in the welfare of the village of janga, he also fought the 2nd world war.

There is a village by the name of Kahut near Bhuchal Kalan which is inhabited mostly by Kahuts. Late Major General Ubaid-ur-Rehman signal officer in chief of Pakistan Army - 1970's belonged to this village. Another small village by the name of Dhalal sharing areas with Tatral is mostly inhabited by Kahuts.They are prominent cultivators of these two villages and hold ownership of the two of most of the agricultural lands present . Noor Khan belonged to Waryamal, a Kahoot village in southern Chakwal tehsil. Karyala and Bhalla in Chakwal tehsil represent the principle zameendars of this family, notable being late Ghulam Haider Khan, father of Zafar Ali Khan. Ghulam Haider of Bhalla was a well-known zameendar and a social figure of Kahutani, the name given to southern part of Chakwal tehsil where Kahuts predominate. Sarfaraz Khan from village Thirpal is a Ph.D in Economics and is retired as head of Pakistan Institute of Development Economics. According to Kahuts, they were originally located in Arabia, the present name being merely that of their common ancestor 25 generations ago. About the year A.D 1359, their ancestor Said Nawab Ali, migrated to Delhi in the reign of Firoz Shah. On the way to Delhi they fought and conquered Raja of Sialkot. On reaching Delhi, they paid respect to the king. The king ordered them to hold the Dhanni and Salt range on his behalf under the leadership of Kahut, the son of Nawab Ali. They thus returned to this district and settled first at a site near village Waryamal. The eastern part of Dhanni was then a lake, which on coming of Babur was drained at his command; the Kahuts taking part in the work and colonising the land. Chaudhry Sahnsar, 8th in descent from Kahut was their ancestor at the time of Babur.(District Gazatteer-Jhelum Districts 1904 published by Government of Punjab, Pakistan)

According to Ibbetson in "Punjab Castes" 1881, the Kahuts are probably of Rajput origin and have come from Jammu hills to Chakwal area.