Koh-i-Noor leaves Afghanistan and enters India for the second time (1810-1849)

The two brothers Sha Shoja and Zaman Sha, escaped to Lahore and sought refuge with the Sikh Maharajah Ranjit Singh, the Lion of Punjab, who was appointed as Governor of Lahore by Zaman Shah himself in 1798, when it was part of the Durrani Empire.

Shah Shoja had carried the Koh-i-Noor with him to Lahore, and Maharaj Ranjit Singh who had heard about the diamond earlier, expressed an interest in owning it. On the assumption that Shah Shoja was holding the Koh-i-Noor diamond, he tried to extort the diamond from him, as a price for giving him and his family sanctuary in Lahore. But, Shah Shoja denied having the diamond with him, giving different reasons at different times to avoid giving the diamond to the Maharajah. On one occasion he said that he had lost the diamond with some other jewels. On another occasion he said that he had pawned the diamond with a money-lender. On a third occasion Shah Shoja dispatched a large white topaz to the Maharajah, claiming that it was the Koh-i-Noor diamond. The King gave the Topaz to the court jewelers asking them to confirm whether it was the diamond. When the results of the court jewelers proved negative the King became furious, and ordered that food supplies to the Shoja household be cut off for two days, and posted a guard outside the house. Finally Sha Shoja relented, and agreed to surrender the Koh-i-Noor to the Maharajah if he calls over personally to receive it.

The Maharajah accepted Shah Shoja's suggestion, and at an appointed time on June 1st 1813, visited his house, to receive the diamond. The two men greeted each other, and after sometime a servant brought a bundle from an adjacent room, and placed it before the King. Ranjit Singh unwrapped the bundle and found the Koh-i-Noor inside. He then left the room with the gem, without saying a word.

Ranjit Singh was the first and most powerful of Sikh Kings who ruled Punjab. After his death in 1839, at least three kings succeeded him one after another, and were killed in a struggle for succession. Finally in 1843, Dulip Singh, the last of Ranjit Singh's sons, who was a minor, was proclaimed the King, with his mother Jindan kaur as regent. Two Sikh wars were fought during his reign, leading to the annexation of the Punjab by the British. On March 29th 1849, the British flag was hoisted on the citadel of Lahore and the Punjab was formally proclaimed to be part of the British Empire in India.