There were only four Muslim princely states in Gujarat, and their first Nawabs were defeated or killed by the Kolis of Gujarat.
In the Radhanpur state of the Muslims of the Babi dynasty, there was a Koli's village called Balor. Koli landlords (Koli Patel, Koli Thakor, Koli Kotwal, Koli Pagi, Koli Darbar) had activities increasingly harassing Muslims, extorting taxes and plundering at will. Consequently, Nawab Khan Jahan Jawan Mard Khan Babi (Khanji Khan) of Radhanpur himself attacked the Kolis of Balor with the Radhanpur army. However, shortly after the battle began, the Kolis of Valor beheaded Nawab Khan Jahan Jawan Mard Khan (Khanji Khan). After the Nawab's death, his son was made the Nawab of Radhanpur.
In 1526, Sultan Sikandar Shah of the Gujarat Sultanate sent his general Malik Latif Shirza Khan with 3,000 horsemen to capture Latif Khan. However, when the general entered in Kolis' territory, the Kolis attacked him. The Kolis killed Malik Latif and his 1,200 horsemen. After Malik Latif's murder by the Kolis, Sultan Sikandar Shah appointed a new commander, Kaiser Khan, and ordered him to suppress the Kolis, but Kaiser Khan was also unable to do so.
In 1706, during the reign of Mughal Sultan Aurangzeb (Alamgir), the Kolis of Patan (Gujarat) beheaded Shahkali Khan, the Mughal Faujdar of Patan.
In 1721, Mughal Sultan Muhammad Shah (Mirza Nasir-ud-Din Muhammad Shah) (Roshan Akhtar) sent his trusted officer, Qasim Ali Khan Babi (Nawab of Kheda) to collect taxes from the Kolis of Kheda district. However, the Kolis refused to pay, leading to a battle between the Kolis and the Mughal army at Pethapur. The Kolis killed Qasim Ali Khan, and the Mughal army withdrew.
During the reign of Mughal Sultan Aurangzeb, Muhammad Mubariz Khan Bahadur Babi, the Faujdar of Vadnagar and Junagadh (Muhammad Mubariz was a Nawab of Junagadh and was under Mughal authority), was ordered by Sultan Aurangzeb (Alamgir) to discipline the Kolis of Sampra, as the Kolis were increasingly engaging in anti-Muslim activities and their looting activities were not abating despite repeated warnings. Faujdar Mubariz, along with the Mughal army, attacked the Kolis of Sampara. However, defeating the Mughals in this battle, the Kolis beheaded Faujdar Muhammad Mubariz Khan Bahadur, and the Mughal army retreated. After this, Muhammad Mubariz Khan Bahadur's brother, Sher Khan Bahadur (Jawan Mard Khan), was appointed Faujdar. In 1730, when the Mughal Empire weakened, Sher Khan Bahadur declared Junagadh an independent state from the Mughals.
In 1766, during the reign of Nawab Momin Khan II of Khambhat, the Kolis attacked the Khambhat state. Unable to defeat the Kolis and wounded, the wounded Nawab negotiated a peace treaty with the Kolis, offering them 4,000 rupees as a pledge that the Kolis would not harm the Khambhat state in the future. The Nawab also granted the Kolis free movement within the Khambhat state without restriction.
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