The advent of the Mughals did not immediately alter the system of administration prevalent under the Sultans. Babar, the first of the Mughals, had no time to think of reconstruction. Humayun's reign was full of turmoil. Sher Shah had the necessary aptitude, but his reign was short. His reforms suggested certain lines of action to his successors.
1.
The King:
It
was left to Akbar to take up the work of reconstruction in the light of the lessons
and experiments reaped by three centuries of Muslim rule in northern India.
Sher Shah's emphasis on centralization of power in the hands of the monarch was
adopted by Akbar. Like his Timurid ancestors, Akbar asserted that the monarchy
was a divine gift. Abul Fazl, his chronicler, observes: "Kingship is a
gift of God and is not bestowed till many thousand good qualities have been
gathered together in an individual." Thus the emperor, the "Shadow of
God on Earth" was the fountain head of the administration, the centre of
all civil and military authority and the highest court of appeal in all
judicial and executive matters.
2.
Wazir
or Prime Minister:
Next
to the Emperor, during the Sultanate period, was the Wazir or Prime Minister.
He usurped most of the powers and prerogatives of the Sultan and became a
constant source of conflict between the monarch, his nobles and wazirs. Akbar
abolished the post of "all powerful wazir" and distributed his powers
and functions among four ministers.
3.
Diwan
or Minister of Finance:
The
Diwan was the head of the revenue and finance departments. Ibn Hasan in his
Central Structure of the Mughal Empire describes his power and duties thus: the
diwan had his eye upon every officer of the State who drew his salary from the
jagir. As the Chief Executive Officer of the State, in addition to his revenue
powers, he had control over provinces and provincial officers from governor to
the amil and the patwari. As Finance Minister, he had his finger upon every pie
(dam) that reached the royal treasury and went out of it. His office was also
responsible for the posting and transfers of subahdars, faujdars, diwans,
kroris, amins, tehsildars, khazanchis, etc. He was assisted by the following officers (1)
Diwan-i-Khalsa, (2) Diwan-i-Tan or Diwan-i-Tankha, (3) Diwan-i-Jagir, (4)
Diwan-i-Bayut, (5 ) Madad-e-Mash and religious accounts, (6) Treasury, (7)
Mushrif (chief accountant), (8) Mustoufi (auditor).
4.
Mir
Bakshi:
Ibn
Hasan observes: "The recruitment of the services on military lines, the
dependence of the rank of an officer on the number of soldiers required to be
maintained by him, and the payment of his salary on the presentation of a
stipulated number of horsemen, at fixed intervals, naturally led to the
division of the powers of the Wazir and the chief Bakshi became an equal sharer
with him of his responsibilities and prestige." His department passed all orders of appointment to
mansabs of all ranks. All high officers from the provinces on a visit to the
capital and ambassadors from other countries were presented to the King by him.
He was always present in the darbar as well as in the private chamber of the
King to participate in discussions of important and confidential matters of
State. The Waqia Navis (news reporters) from the provinces sent their
confidential reports to him and he would place them before the King. He was
also responsible for making the necessary arrangements for the comfort of the
soldiers.
5.
Mir
Saman:
The
Mir Saman, also known as Khan Saman, was the minister-in-charge of the King's
household, royal buildings, roads, gardens, stores, karkhanas and purchases. As
minister-in-charge of the royal household, Mir Saman was responsible for
supplying all the needs ranging from jewels to swords and cannons of the royal
family. He would make the necessary arrangements for the expedition of the
Emperor. He also selected the gifts offered by the Emperor to distinguished
generals and mansabdars, literary men and foreign ambassadors. The Mir Saman
also supervised the karkhanas, the biggest manufacturing agency of armaments
and luxury goods in the country. These karkhanas were located in the capital as
well as in the provinces. He made all purchases on behalf of the State and also
supervised all the transactions in connection with the State monopolies in
salt, elephants, jewels, etc. His department also took charge of all the
property of a deceased noble according to the rules and prepared an inventory
of the assets of the deceased.
6.
The
Sadr:
The
Sadr, according to Muslim jurists, "is the con necting link between the
king and the people, the upholder of shara and the spokesman of the
ulema". Thus the Sadr, in theory at least, was the director of religious
matters, charities and endowments and head of the judicial department. He was
also expected to supervise the educational activities of the State. In actual
practice, it seems, his power had been limited to the granting of stipends and
jagirs to scholars and needy persons. Akbar did not interfere in the Sadr's
privileges and allowed him a free hand in the grants of stipends and lands.
However, many instances of favouritism and misappropriation of government funds
came to the Emperor's notice which obliged Akbar to look into the working of
the department. He curtailed the powers of the Sadr in making grants and cut
down the grants which had already been made. Sometimes the same person held the
post of the qazi and the Sadr. In his capacity as Qazi-ul-Quzat, the Sadr held
his own court, recommended appoint ment of judicial officers and supervised the
working of the depart ment. Under Akbar and Aurangzeb, however, we find
separate persons being appointed as the chief qazi and the Sadr.
7.
Muhtasib
or Censor of Public Morals:
Among
the other central officers of importance was the muhtasib or Censor of Public
Morals. Besides his duties of examining weights and measures and preventing
gambling and drinking, he had to keep a watch that the Muslims followed their
religious practices like the offering of prayers, keeping a fast in the month
of Ramzan, abstinence from drinking, etc., as ordained by the Quran. The powers
of the muhtasibs increased considerably during the reign of Aurangzeb who
strictly enforced the canonical law and forebade music, lighting of lamps on
Muslim tombs and shrines on Thurs days, sale of toys representing animate
beings, flaunting of beards of uncanonical length and shape, etc. They were
also given the additional duty of demolishing newly built Hindu temples.
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