Sheikhupura

Sheikhupura is an industrial city and capital of Sheikhupura District in the province of Punjab about 35 km northwest of Lahore in Pakistan.It is known for its historical places, and is commonly known locally as Qila Sheikhupura, because of the fort in the city, constructed by the Mughal Emperor Jahangir. 

The name Sheikhupura is derived from a nickname of Jahangir, who was known as Sheikhu by his father Akbar the Great. The city is the headquarters of Sheikhupura District.

The history of Sheikhupura goes back to 100 BC. Historical research has established the fact that Sangla or Sakala was the capital of Punjab once, and it was here that Alexander the Great of Macedonia (known locally as Sikandar e Azam) fought one of his most serious battles of his career. Its name is spoken of, firstly in the pages of Tuzk-e-Jahangiri as Jahangirpura, after the name of Prince Salim Nur u Din Muhammad Jahangir.The fourth Mughal emperor of India named Jahangir changed the name of the city from Virkgarh to 

Sheikhupura. This area belongs to the Virk Jats.Mughal Emperor Nor-u-Din Muhammad [Jahangir] renamed Virkgarh to his nickname of Sheikhu. In 1607, Sheikhupura fort was constructed following an order of Jahangir. The father of Jahangir, Emperor Jalal-uddin Mohammad Akbar used to call him Sheikhu (a nickname).During the reign of Emperor Jahangir (1605 to 1627), Sheikhupura had the status of royal hunting ground. In Tuzk-e-Jahangiri, Jahangir 

wrote during the events in 1607:

    "On the day of Tuesday, I reside in Jahangirpura, my hunting ground. According to my order, a Minar and a grave for my deer, Mansraj, were constructed here."

Mughal Emperor Jahangir granted the estate of Sheikhupura to Syed Usman, the father of Shah Bilal, a religious preceptor of the line of Qadiriyyah.

       Over the whole district, the period between the decline of the Mughal Empire after the death of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb and the rise of Sikh confederacies was one of utter confusion and anarchy. The ccessive shocks of invasion from the northwest, and the devastation caused again and again by the invading armies of Nadir Shah.

Nader Shah and Ahmad Shah Abdali (1724–1773) almost completely ruined the prosperity of the tract. After the death of Aurangazeb, Muslim power declined and the Sikhs who occupied the region and ruled through various misls or small to medium sized groups. Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah Abdali led raids that further weakened local Muslim rule. Several raids were made by the Bhangi Sardars, a Sikh community. Around 1780, Ranjit Singh, a Sikh ruler defeated the grandson of Ahmad Shah Abdali and later occupied this district. The Muslims faced severe restrictions during the Sikh rule. The Sikhs were defeated by the British around 1850 and it stayed under British rule until 1947.

In 1851, Sheikhupura Tehsil became part of Gujranwala District. The Artimapal Secretary Chief Commissioner Lahore wrote a letter to the Department of Wealth in 1855 to combine the Sheikhupura Tehsil with the Lahore District but it was never done. As soon as it became a District Zillah in 1919, a lot of lawyers came to practice. Under Sir Ganga Ram, district courts and hospitals were constructed in the city.

The predominantly Muslim population supported Muslim League and Pakistan Movement. After the independence of Pakistan in 1947, the minority Hindu and Sikh population migrated to India while the Muslim refugees from India settled in the Sheikhupura district.

Tourist spots

Sheikhupura has a number of historical places in the city which attracts visitors to the city:

Hiran Minar3 km from city Sheikhupura.

Sheikhupura Fort (Qila Sheikhupura)

Company Bagh in city Sheikhupura.

Tomb of Shah Jamal in city Sheikhupura.

Muqadssa-e-Mariam (Sacred Place for Christian Community)

Sacha SodhaA Gurudawara is present here which is holly place for Sikh community.

Shrine of Mian Sher Muhammad Sharaqpuri is located at Sharaqpur Sharif neaely 30 km from Sheikhupura.

Shrine of Syed Pir Bahar Shah is located near Bati Choak, in city Sheikhupura.

Shrine of Syed Waras Ali Shah is located at Jandiala Sher Khan, 11 km from city Sheikhupura.

Sheikhupura Stadium is a much-use stadium in Sheikhdom, Pakistan. It is currently used mostly for
cricket matches. The stadium holds 15,000 spectators and hosted its first test match in 1996. Famous
Cricketer Wasim Akram scored his best score at this venue.
There is also a hockey stadium named after Saeed Anwar Malik (former legend hockey Olympian), a
public park, a gymnasium, electronic scoreboard, and stadium shopping center in the neighbourhood.
Jinnah Snooker Club is also a famous Snooker club of the city. It is situated at Jinnah Park (Center
of the City). It is also providing coaching classes under the supervision of national and international
players and has all kinds of pools games in their Pool Hall.
Sporting personalities
Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, born in Sheikhupura, went on to achieve international success playing for the
Pakistan National Cricket Team, representing in ODI, Tests and T20s.
Saeed Anwar played three Olympics for Pakistan hockey team.
Anjum Saeed played one Olympics for Pakistan hockey team.
Aaqib Javed played as fast bowler for Pakistan cricket team. He represented the national team in ODI and Tests.
Muhammad Asif a right arm medium fast bowler in cricket.

Parks
There are only some limited parks in the city which are not well-developed. The Government is trying to increase the number of parks and reform the existing parks so that the citizens can have fun there. Some parks are:

• Ayesha Park located in Civil Lines
• Company Park
• Jinnah Park
• Fatima Park
• Jillani Garden
• Stadium Park
• Hockey Ground
• Basket Ball court

Restaurants and Hotels
The number of restaurants and hotels are increasing day by day. Recently, Civil Quarters Road's name
has changed to Food Street and almost all the restaurants are located there.

Country	Pakistan
Province	Punjab
District	Sheikhupura
Area Total	5,960 km2 (2,300 sq mi)
Elevation	236 m (774 ft)
Population (2012)	857,000
Estimate (2006)	400,000
Time zone	PST (UTC+5)
Number of Union councils	51