Kotkapura is a historic city 50 km from Bathinda, in the state of Punjab, India. It is the largest city in the Faridkot District and used to have one of the largest cotton markets in India. Kotkapura is also known for its railway crossing gate.
Bhallan, founder of the Faridkot principality died issueless in 1643. He was succeeded by his nephew, Kapura Brar, who founded the town of Kotkapura in 1661. Nawab Kapura was the chaudhry of eighty-four villages. Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th guru of the Sikhs, en route from Machhiwara, reached Kotkapura and asked Kapura for his fort to fight the pursuing Mughal army. Kapura was a Sikh, but did not want to earn the ire of the Mughals by helping Guru Gobind Singh openly in his war with them and refused the fort to the guru 2
Nawab Kapura�s state was captured in 1803 by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. In 1808, Ranjit Singh captured the principality of Faridkot up to Muktsar, but vacated the area on the behest of the British3. During the Anglo-Sikh Wars in 1845, Pahara Singh Brar, aided the British by providing secret intelligence to the British army and was rewarded with territory after the British victory over Maharaja Ranjit Singh
