"Dumraon Raj Pariwar"

Dumraon Raj was a medieval chieftaincy and later a zamindari estate in erstwhile Shahabad district of Bihar, now in Buxar district.

The founders of Dumraon Raj were Ujjainiya Rajputs who traced their origin to the Parmar rulers of Malwa who moved to Western Bihar in the 13th century. The founder of the family was Santana Shahi who settled here while returning from Gaya after offering pind daan.

In 1745 Raja Horil Singh shifted the headquarters of his capital from Naurattan Garh in Bhojpur to Dumraon.

The next great chief of the Dumraon family was Raja Bikramjit Singh, who was given the title of Raja by the emperor Shah Alam in 1771. He was succced by his son Maharaja Bahadur Jai Prakash Singh in 1816.

In 1881 Radha Prasad Singh succeeded to the gaddi of Dumraon Raj and the title of Maharaj Bahadur was conferred on him in 1882  in precedence of the zamindars of Bettiah, Hathuwa and Darbhanga.

He was the head of the Rajputs in Shahbad and did valuable service during the famine of 1873-74. He was subsequently made K.C.I.E ( Knight Commander of the Indian Empire). His only daughter was married to Maharaj Venkat Raman Singh of Rewa.

On the death of Maharaja Radha Prasad Singh in 1894, the Dumraon Raj was placed under the management of Court of Wards but soon Maharani Beni Prasad  Kuari, the widow of late Maharaja, took it back and managed the affairs of the Raj till her death in 1907.

Due to the absence of direct male descendant, the Raj was engaged in a prolonged litigations. In 1911, after obtaining a decree in his favour from Sub-judge's Court in Arrah, Sri Keshav Prasad Singh got the possession of the Dumraon Raj from the Court of Wards.

He was conferred with the title of Maharaja Bahadur and Knighthood. He was also a member of the Executive Council of the Governor of Bihar. Paigambar Baksh Khan, father of the Shehnai Maestro Bharat Ratna Bismillah Khan was the court musician in his court. Bismillah Khan was born in Dumraon in 1916 and spent his early childhood there before moving to Banaras.

After his death in 1933, he was succeeded by Maharaja Rama Ranvijay Prasad Singh, who was further succeeded by his son Maharaja Kamal Singh in 1949.

It was during the regime of Maharaja Kamal Singh that the Zamindari system was abolished by the Bihar Land Reforms Act, 1950 and the possession of the zamindari villages of Dumraon Raj were handed to the Bihar government in 1952. He was also an industrialist and had sponsored a lantern factory and a cold storage at Dumraon.

The last Maharaja of Dumraon Raj in Bihar.

Maharaja Kamal Singh Elected from 1952 to 1962, he was the youngest MP and the last surviving member of the first Lok Sabha. He was known for his welfare works and bond with Atal Bihari Vajpayee. 

Dumraon Raj had sponsored a number of religious and charitable institutions for maintaining beautiful temples, hospitals, schools and educational institutions at Dumraon, Bikramganj and Arrah.

Remnants of this Raj can be traced at various locations including Bihta, Jagdisgpur, Bhojpur, Buxar and Patna.

Source - Bihar District Gazetteers: Shahabad)