फिरोज शाह तुगलक के प्रशासनिक सुधार

 

सुल्तान फिरोज के समक्ष मुख्य कार्य जनता तथा कर्मचारियों तथा विशेषकर उमरा वर्ग को सन्तुष्ट करना था जो मुहम्मद तुगलक़ के शासन में हुए परिवर्तन से भयभीत तथा असन्तुष्ट थे। उसने इस बात का भी प्रयास किया कि उन लोगों को सन्तुष्ट किया जाए जिन पर सुल्तान मुहम्मद के काल में अत्याचार हुआ था ।

                      संतुष्टि दायक उपाय

1.       ऋण पंजीकाओं को नष्ट करना

फिरोज तुगलक के शासक बनने पर उसके समक्ष वह पंजिका प्रस्तुत की गई जिसमें उन लोगों के नाम थे जिनको मृतक सुल्तान ने कृषि के विकास हेतु दो करोड़ टंके सरकारी ऋण (सोनधर) में दिये गये थे। यह देख फिरोज उलझन में पड़ गया तथा कवामुलमुल्क से परामर्श लिया इसके पश्चात उसने दरबार में इन पंजीकाओं को नष्ट कर दिया। इससे इस धन के दुरुपयोग करने वाले अफसर बड़े प्रसन्न हुये।

2.       खाने जहाँ मकबूल की नियुक्ति

उसी दिन मलिक मकबूल वजीर नियुक्ति हुआ तथा उसको उपाधि खाने जहां मकबूल रखी गई । यह मुहम्मद तुगलक के समय से ही विभिन्न पदो पर कार्य करता आया था तथा अपने काम से प्रभावित किया था। यह अपनी ईमानदारी तथा कर्तव्य निष्ठा के कारण प्रसिद्ध था। फिरोज कहा करता थाः दिल्ली का वास्तविक शासक खाने जहां है परन्तु खाने जहां कभी अपनी हद नहीं भूला ।

3.       कठोर सजा पर रोक

फिरोज तुगलक ने रक्तपात तथा यातनाओं पर निषेध लगा दिया। बरनी कहता है कि सबसे बड़ा कारण जिसने फिरोज शाह के शासन को स्थिरता में योगदान दिया । वह कहता है कि 'सियासत' मृत्युदण्ड का निषेध था । भूतकाल में जो विभत्स यातनाएं दी जाती थी फिरोज ने उनको बन्द करवा दिया। शरीयत के अनुसार राजतन्त्र को मान्यता नहीं है अतः राजदोहों के लिये कोई दंड निर्धारित नहीं किया । फिरोज के ही अनुसार "कष्ट दिए बिना ही जनता के मन में सरकार के प्रति भय तथा प्रतिष्ठा में वृद्धि हुई।"

4.       मुहम्मद तुगलक के कार्यों के लिए जनता से माफीपत्र

फिरोज तुगलक ने मुहम्मद तुगलक के कार्यों के लिये पश्चाताप किया। उसने उन लोगों से जिनके परिजनों की हत्या मुहम्मद तुगलक के काल में हुई या नुकसान हुआ उनको क्षतिपूर्ति देकर एक माफीनामा ले लिया। जिससे की मृत्तक सुल्तान की आत्मा को शान्ति मिले तथा जनता को अपने नुकसान की क्षतिपूर्ति मिले तथा वह मुहम्मद तुगलक को माफ कर सके।

5.       खुत्बे में पूर्व शासकों का नाम

फिरोज ने आदेश दिया कि शुक्रवारीय धार्मिक प्रवचनों में उसके नाम के पहले दिल्ली के पूर्व के सुल्तानों के नामों का भी उल्लेख किया जाना चाहिये । परन्तु कुतुबुद्दीन का नाम न होना आश्चर्यजनक है। प्रत्येक शुक्रवार को नमाज के पश्चात फिरोजशाह की यह नियम था कि वह मुहम्मद बिन तुगलक की बहन खुदावन्द जादा को देखने जाता था जिसने उसकी हत्या का प्रयास किया था ।

6.       अमीरों को पद को वंशानुगत करके उन्हें उच्च वेतन

फिरोज ने अपने अमीरों के पदों को वंशानुगत कर दिया तथा उनको अत्यन्त उच्च वेतन देना शुरू किया। वह अपने खानों और मलिको की नीजी आप के रूप में 4 लाख टंका, 8 लाख टंका वेतन देता था। उसके वजीर खाने जहां को 13 लाख टंका का वेतन मिलता था।

               राजस्व व्यवस्था सुधार प्रयास

1.       जमा का निर्धारण

अनुभवी अधिकारी ख्वाजा हुसामुद्दीन ने विभिन्न प्रान्तों का दौरा करके राजस्व सम्बन्धी सभी रिकॉर्डों की जाँच की और छः वर्षों के कठिन परिश्रम के बाद राज्य का महसूल छः करोड़ और पिचहत्तर लाख टंका निश्चित किया। सुल्तान फिरोज के शासनकाल के अन्त तक महसूल की यह रकम अपरिवर्तित रही और जमा में कोई परिवर्तन नहीं किया गया।

2.       अबवाबों का हटाना

पूर्व मुसलमानों के शासन कालों में अनेक अबवाब लगा दिए थे। सुल्तान ने कर व्यवस्था को इस्लामी विधि के अनुसार लागू किया। इस्लाम में विधि-सम्मत करों के अन्तर्गत चार करों को रखा गया है—खिराज, खम्स, जजिया और जकात। फिरोज ने पहली बार ब्राह्मणों पर कठोरता से जजिया कर लगाया। फ़िरोज ने सिचाई की सुविधा प्रदान करने के बदले में हक़ ए शर्ब नाम का कर 10% लिया।

3.       कर वसूली का आधार उत्पादन

बरनी के अनुसार फिरोज शाह तुगलक के शासन को स्थायी बनाने वाला एक कारण यह था कि उसने यह आदेश दिया कि खराज (भूमिकर) हुक्म- ए- हासिल के अनुसार लगाये जायेगें। इससे यह फायदा हुआ कि उत्पादन घटने या बढ़ने पर इसकी लाभ तथा हानी किसान तथा शासक दोनों को उठाना पड़ता था। इससे किसानों को कुछ राहत मिला होगा।

4.       राजस्व वृद्धि के कार्य

सुल्तान फिरोज ने कृषि के विस्तार तथा राजस्व वृद्धि के लिए भी महत्वपूर्ण कार्य किए थे। सिंचाई की सुविधा के लिए फीरोज ने पाँच बड़ी नहरों का निर्माण कराया। इनमें से एक 150 मील लम्बी नहर यमुना नदी से हिसार तक बनायी गयी थीं। दूसरी 96 मील लम्बी नहर सतलज से घग्घर तक जाती थी। तीसरी नहर सिरमौर की पहाड़ियों के निकट से आरम्भ होकर हाँसी तक जाती थी। चौथी नहर घग्घर से फीरोजाबाद शहर तक और पाँचवीं यमुना नदी से फीरोजाबाद तक जाती थी। इन नहरों के कारण कृषि योग्य भूमि में वृद्धि हुई, व्यापारिक सुविधाएँ बढ़ीं और सिंचाई कर के रूप में राज्य की आय में वृद्धि हुई। फीरोज ने सिंचाई और यात्रियों की सुविधा के लिए 150 कुएँ खुदवाये। फरिश्ता के अनुसार फीरोज ने सिंचाई की सुविधा के लिए विभिन्न नदियों पर 50 बाँध और 30 झीलों अथवा जल को संग्रह करने के लिए तालाबों का निर्माण कराया था।

                   सैन्य व्यवस्था में सुधार प्रयास

1.       वेतन के रूप में भूमि अधिन्यास की शुरुआत तथा इजारेदारी

फिरोज शाह ने सम्पूर्ण सेना को वेतन के बदले भूमिकर अधिन्यास देने लगा । यह विलक्षण प्रणाली थी तथा दिल्ली के पूर्व के सुल्तानों ने इसकी अनुमति नहीं दो थी। इसका असर काफी दूरगामी तथा नुकसानदायक परिणाम हुआ। कार्यस्थल पर नियुक्त सैनिक अपनी वेतन नहीं वसूल सकते थे अतः उसने इसे ठेके पर दिया इससे ठेकेदार काफी समृद्ध हो गये तथा सैनिक परेशान हो गये।

2.       सैनिकों के पदों को वंशानुगत करना

अफिक के अनुसार यदि कोई सैनिक मर जाता था या बुढ़ा हो जाता था तो उसका पद उसके पुत्र को स्थायी रूप से दे दिया जाता था। वह भी न हो सके तो स्थायी रूप से उसके दास को और यदि उसके कोई दास भी न हो तो उसकी महिलाओं को मिलता था। यह नियम फिरोज के के चालीस वर्ष के शासन काल में बना रहा।

3.       सेना में भ्रष्टाचार को प्रश्रय

फ़िरोज ने  घोड़ों को दागने की प्रथा में ढील दी। उदारता और दया के प्रति सर्वथा गलत दृष्टिकोण अपनाने हुये फिरोज ने तो एक बार एक व्यथित सैनिक को एक स्वर्ण टंका भी दिया ताकि वह अपने अधिकारी लो अपने निम्न स्तरीय घोड़े को मंजूर कराने के लिये रिश्वत दे सके ।

इन्हें नरम उपायों के कारण, बरनी की अति रजिंत भाषा में प्रशासन में स्थापित्व आया, शासन के सारे कार्य व्यवस्थित हो तथा एवं सभी वर्गो के लोग संतुष्ट हो गये, हिन्दू अथवा मुस्लिम प्रजा प्रसन्न हो गई और हर कोई अपने-अपने पेशे से जुट गया।" पर इस नरमी के परिणाम वास्तव में सत्ता को कमजोर करने वाले हुये जिसका परिणाम आने उत्तराधिकारियों को भुगतना पड़ा।

                कल्याणकारी राज्य की स्थापना का प्रयास

सुल्तान फिरोज अपने जनकल्याणकारी कार्यों के लिए प्रसिद्ध है। उसने राज्य के कुछ वर्गों के प्रति शासन के उत्तरदायित्व को स्वीकार किया जिसे राज्य को कल्याणकारी स्वरूप देने का प्रयास माना जा सकता है। लेकिन यह ध्यान रखना आवश्यक है कि उसकी कल्याणकारी अवधारणा केवल मुस्लिम समाज तक ही सीमित थी।

1.       रोजगार दफ्तर

उसका एक महत्वपूर्ण कार्य रोजगार दफ्तर खोलना था। दिल्ली के कोतवाल को सुल्तान ने आदेश दिया कि वह उन लोगों की खोज करे जो बेकार हैं और उन्हें दरबार में पेश करे। सुल्तान स्वयं उनकी योग्यता की जाँच करता था और उसके अनुसार उन्हें नौकरी दी जाती थी। बेकार लोग स्वयं भी रोजगार दफ्तर में नाम लिखा सकते थे।

2.       विवाह कार्यालय

जनकल्याण की दिशा में सुल्तान का दूसरा कार्य गरीब मुस्लिम परिवारों की कन्याओं के विवाह के लिए राज्य की आर्थिक सहायता देना था। इसके लिए दीवाने-खैरात नाम का एक पृथक् विभाग स्थापित किया। निर्धन मुसलमान और विधवाएँ कन्या के वयस्क होने पर इस सहायता के लिए प्रार्थना-पत्र दे सकते थे। उन्हें 50 या 25 टंके स्थिति के अनुसार सहायता दी जाती थी। यह विभाग विधवाओं तथा अनाथ बच्चों की भी सहायता करता था।

3.       शिफाखाना

सुल्तान ने औषधालयों की भी स्थापना की थी जहाँ रोगियों को दवा और भोजन मुफ्त प्रदान किया जाता था। सुलतान ने इसके खर्च के लिए कुछ गाँव निश्चित कर रखे थे।  

4.       शिक्षा को प्रोत्साहन

फिरोज तुगलक को शिक्षा में विशेष अभिरुचि थी। उसने तीस मदरसों की स्थापना की थी जिनमें दिल्ली का मदरसा इस्लामी ज्ञान तथा अध्ययन का महत्वपूर्ण केन्द्र था। इस केन्द्र में सुल्तान ने पश्चिम एशिया के प्रसिद्ध विद्वानों को बुलाकर नियुक्त किया था। राज्य की ओर से शिक्षकों को उदारपूर्वक धर्मस्व प्रदान किया गया तथा विद्यार्थियों के लिए भी वजीफों की व्यवस्था की गयी थी। इन मदरसों में राज्य ने शिक्षा की पूरी सुविधाओं का इन्तजाम किया था। सुल्तान को स्वयं इतिहास तथा इस्लामिक ज्ञान में रुचि थी।

5.       पेंशन कार्यालय

फ़िरोज  ने अपने नागरिक एवं सैन्य सेवा में लगे लोगों के लिए आजीवन पेंशन देने का प्रबंध करने का प्रयास किया ।

6.       दीवाने बन्द गान

फीरोज को दासों का बहुत शौक था और उसके दासों की संख्या प्राय: 1,80,000 तक पहुँच गयी थी। प्रत्येक दास को 10 से 100 टांके के बीच तक वेतन मिलता था तथा कभी-कभी जागीरें भी मिलती थीं। उनकी देखभाल के लिए एक पृथक विभाग और एक पृथक अधिकारी की नियुक्ति की गयी थी। उन दासों की शिक्षा का पूर्ण ध्यान रखा जाता था। सभी सरदारों और सूबेदारों को यह आदेश दिये गये थे कि वे अपने दासों से पुत्रवत्व्यवहार करें। फीरोज का यह शौक राज्य के लिए हानिकारक सिद्ध हुआ।

7.       सार्वजनिक निर्माण के कार्य—

फिरोज ने अनेक निर्माण कार्य कराए। फिरोज को निर्माण कार्यों में इतनी रुचि थी कि वूल्जले हेग ने उसकी तुलना रोमन सम्राट् आगस्टस से की है। फरिश्ता निर्माण कार्य को सुल्तान का ‘मुख्य व्यसन’ बताता है। उसके अनुसार सुल्तान ने 40 मस्जिदें, 20 महल, 100 सराय, 5 जलाशय, 100 अस्पताल, 5 मकबरे, 100 स्नानागार, 10 स्मारक स्तम्भ और 150 पुल बनवाए थे। सम्भव है कि इनमें से उसने कुछ की मरम्मत करायी हो। वह यह भी कहता है कि सुल्तान ने 300 नगरों की स्थापना की थी। बिजली गिरने से कुतुबमीनार की ऊपरी मंजिल गिर गई थी, उसका निर्माण सुल्तान ने कराया था। सुल्तान की जिज्ञासा और रुचि का प्रमाण यह है कि वह अशोक के दो स्तम्भों, एक टोपरा से तथा दूसरा मेरठ से दिल्ली लाया था।

Administrative Reforms of Firoz Shah Tughlaq

 

The main task before Sultan Firoz was to satisfy the public and the employees and especially the Umra Class who were afraid and dissatisfied with the changes in the rule of Muhammad Tughlaq. He also tried to satisfy those people who were oppressed during the reign of Sultan Muhammad.

          Pleasing solution of Administration

1.     Destruction of loan registers

When Firoz Tughlaq became the ruler, a register was presented before him which contained the names of those people to whom the deceased Sultan had given two crore tankas as government loan (Sondhar) for the development of agriculture. Seeing this, Firoz got confused and consulted Qawamulmulk, after which he destroyed these registers in the court. This made the officers who misused this money very happy.

2.     Appointment of Khan Jahan Maqbool

On the same day, Malik Maqbool was appointed as Wazir and his title was Jahan Maqbool. He had been working on various posts since the time of Muhammad Tughlaq and had impressed with his work. He was famous for his honesty and devotion to duty. Firoz used to say: The real ruler of Delhi is Khan-i-Jahan, but Khan-i-Jahan never forgot his limits.

3.     Ban on harsh punishment

Firoz Tughlaq banned bloodshed and torture. Barani says that it was the biggest reason which contributed to the stability of Firoz Shah's rule. He says that 'Siyasat' death penalty was the prohibited. Firoz stopped the gruesome tortures that were given in the past. According to Shariat, monarchy is not recognized, hence no punishment has been prescribed for treason. According to Firoz, "Without giving any trouble, fear and respect for the government increased in the minds of the people."

4.    Apology letter by public for the actions of Muhammad Tughlaq

Firoz Tughlaq repented for the actions of Muhammad Tughlaq. He took an apology from those people whose family members were killed or suffered loss during the reign of Muhammad Tughlaq by giving compensation to them. So that the soul of the deceased Sultan rests in peace and the public gets compensation for its loss and can forgive Muhammad Tughlaq.

 

5.     Name of former rulers in Khutba

Firoz ordered that the names of the previous Sultans of Delhi should also be mentioned before his name in Friday religious sermons. But the absence of Qutubuddin's name is surprising. Every Friday after Namaz, it was the rule of Firoz Shah to go to see Khudavand Zada, the sister of Muhammad bin Tughlaq who had tried to assassinate him.

6.     Higher salaries to the Umrah by inheriting their positions

Firoz made the posts of his nobles hereditary and started paying them extremely high salaries. He used to pay 4 lakh tanka, 8 lakh tanka salary as personal salary to his khans and nobles. His Wazir Khan Jahan got a salary of 13 lakh tanka.

                Reform efforts in Revenue system

1.     Determination of Deposit

Experienced officer Khwaja Hussamuddin visited various provinces and checked all the revenue related records and after six years of hard work, the revenue of the state was fixed at six crores and seventy-five lakh tankas. This amount of revenue remained unchanged till the end of the reign of Sultan Firoz and no change was made in the deposit.

2.     Removal of Abwab

Many Abwab were erected during the rule of earlier Muslims ruler. The Sultan implemented the tax system according to Islamic law. Four taxes have been kept under the legal taxes in Islam – Khiraj, Khams, Jizya and Zakat. For the first time, Firoz imposed Jizya tax strictly on Brahmins. Firoz took a tax called Haq-i-Sharb of 10% in return for providing irrigation facilities.

3.     Production basis of tax collection

According to Barani, one of the reasons that made Firoz Shah Tughlaq's rule permanent was that he ordered that Kharaj (land tax) would be levied as per Hukum-i-Hasil. The advantage of this was that when production increased or decreased, both the farmer and the ruler had to bear its profits and losses. This may have provided some relief to the farmers.

4.     Revenue increasing tasks

Sultan Firoz also did important work for the expansion of agriculture and increase in revenue. To facilitate irrigation, Firoz built five big canals. Of these, a 150 mile long canal was built from Yamuna River to Hisar. The second 96 mile long canal ran from Sutlej to Ghaggar. The third canal started near the hills of Sirmaur and went till Yesi. The fourth canal ran from Ghaggar to Firozabad city and the fifth canal ran from Yamuna river to Firozabad. Due to these canals, cultivable land increased, trade facilities increased and the state's income in the form of irrigation tax increased. Firoz dug 150 wells for irrigation and convenience of travelers. According to Farishta, Firoz had built 50 dams on various rivers to facilitate irrigation and 30 lakes or ponds to store water.

                   Efforts to improve military system ?

1.     Beginning of land settlement as salary

Firoz Shah started giving land as a salary to the entire army. This was a unique system and the previous Sultans of Delhi had not allowed it. Its impact was far-reaching and harmful. The soldiers posted at the workplace could not collect their salaries, so he gave it on contract, this made the contractors very rich and the soldiers got troubled.

2.     Making military posts hereditary

According to Afiq, if a soldier died or grew old, his post was given to his son permanently. If that was not possible then his slave would get it permanently and if he did not have any slave then his women would get it. This rule remained in place during the forty-year rule of Firoz.

3.     Patronizing corruption in the army

Firoz relaxed the practice of branding horses. Adopting a completely wrong attitude towards generosity and kindness, Firoz once even gave a gold tanka to a distressed soldier so that he could bribe his officers to get his inferior horse approved.

Due to these soft measures, in Barani's very eloquent language, the administration became established, all the works of the government were organized and people of all classes were satisfied, Hindu or Muslim subjects became happy and everyone got engaged in their respective professions. " But the consequences of this softness actually weakened the power, the consequences of which the successors had to suffer.

                       Effort to establish a welfare state

Sultan Firoz is famous for his public welfare works. He accepted the responsibility of governance towards some sections of the state, which can be considered as an attempt to give a welfare form to the state. But it is important to note that his welfare concept was limited to the Muslim society only.

1.     Employment Office

One of his important tasks was to open employment offices. The Kotwal of Delhi was ordered by the Sultan to search out those who were idle and present them in the court. The Sultan himself used to check their qualifications and accordingly they were given jobs. Unemployed people could also enroll themselves in the employment office.

2.     Marriage Office

The second function of the Sultan towards public welfare was to provide financial assistance from the state for the marriage of daughters of poor Muslim families. For this, a separate department named Diwan-i-Khairat was established. Poor Muslims and widows could apply for this assistance when the girl becomes an adult. They were given assistance of 50 or 25 tankas depending on the situation. This department also helped widows and orphan children.

3.     Shifa Khana

The Sultan also established dispensaries where medicine and food were provided to patients free of charge. The Sultan had earmarked some villages for its expenses.

4.     Promotion of education

Firoz Tughlaq had special interest in education. He had established thirty madrasas, of which the Madrasa of Delhi was an important center of Islamic knowledge and studies. The Sultan had appointed famous scholars from West Asia in this centre. Teachers were generously provided with endowments by the state and scholarships were also arranged for students. The state had made arrangements for complete education facilities in these madrassas. The Sultan himself was interested in history and Islamic knowledge.

5.     Pension Office

Firoz tried to make arrangements for lifelong pension for those in civil and military service.

6. Diwan-i-Bandgaan

Firoz was very fond of slaves and the number of his slaves almost reached 1,80,000. Each slave received a salary of between 10 to 100 tankas and sometimes also received jagirs. A separate department and a separate officer were appointed to look after them. Full care was taken of the education of those slaves. All the chieftains and subedars were ordered to behave filially with their slaves. This hobby of Firoz proved harmful for the state.

6.     Public works

Firoz got many constructions works done. Firoz was so interested in construction works that Woolzley Heg has compared him with the Roman Emperor Augustus. Farishta describes construction work as Sultan's 'main addiction'. According to him, the Sultan had built 40 mosques, 20 palaces, 100 inns, 5 reservoirs, 100 hospitals, 5 mausoleums, 100 bathrooms, 10 obelisks and 150 bridges. It is possible that he may have got some of these repaired. He also says that the Sultan had established 300 cities. The upper floor of Qutub Minar had collapsed due to lightning, it was built by the Sultan. The proof of Sultan's curiosity and interest is that he brought two pillars of Ashoka, one from Topra and the other from Meerut, to Delhi. 

 

Akbar's Deccan Policy

 

                                        

In the complex political environment, Akbar dreamed of converting his kingdom into an all-India state. Akbar was the first Mughal ruler who, like Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin Khilji, dreamed of conquering the south. The era in which Akbar was born was the era of imperialism in which no state could have any final limit. The axis of the military system and the state system rested on the possibility of a new territory. After North India, the southern states were certainly new battlefields for Akbar which could expand the boundaries of his kingdom as well as increase his fame.

                              Reason/purpose of conquering the south

1. Model of the North in the South: Abul Fazal

“Wise and just people who understand the trend of the age have said that if this entire world, which has become divided due to the inattention of great souls, would have been under a just ruler of skillful and versatile ability, then surely the dust of differences would settle down and humans would attain happiness. Therefore, Akbar, the priest of destiny of our era, is continuously engaged in the conquest of other countries.

2. Racial and communal violence in the South

These days, in the southern states, Shia, Sunni and Mahdavi people were trying to eliminate each other. The religious fanaticism of the Muslims of South India was ultimately causing harm to Islam. Therefore, Akbar wanted to attack South India and bring it under his control.

3. Imperialist Policy: Ishwari Prasad / Ashirwadi Lal Srivastava

Ishwari Prasad - Propagator like Maurya, Gupta, Khiljis

Ashirwadi Lal Srivastava is of the opinion that although the idea of world government is a gift of the 20th century, Akbar had made it a part of his political idealism in the 16th century itself, i.e. four centuries ago. World government in the 16th century meant the unification of the entire Indian subcontinent. He was the first emperor who dreamed of bringing the whole of India under one umbrella and strived for it throughout his life.

4. Economic interests: Shiri Mousavi

The Mughal rulers did not go towards the south with their own will or reluctance, but the structure of the Mughal class was such that it was necessary to increase the royal resources and treasury, which forced the Mughals to move towards the south. The taxes imposed on the southern states of Khandesh, Ahmednagar, Bijapur and Golconda and the money and precious gems collected from treaties increased the Mughal treasury.

5. Dealing with the Portuguese: R.P. Tripathi Vincent Smith

Vincent Arthur Smith believed that the main reason for Akbar's connection and expansion with the southern states was the dominance of the Portuguese on the western seaboard and their control over the ports of Daman and Diu in Gujarat province. According to Smith, although Akbar directly welcomed Christian priests in his court, he indirectly wanted to expel the Portuguese from the western border of India. The behavior of the Portuguese included deceit, hypocrisy and immorality and they also put pressure on the local residents to convert to religion. Used to issue letters.

4. Hideout of Gujarat rebels

 

7. Complex Socio-Economic Political Factors: Satis Chandra

After observing the contacts and relations of Mughal Emperor Akbar with the southern states of Khandesh, Ahmednagar, Bijapur, Golconda, Berar and Bidar, Akbar's southern policy can be divided into four phases.

                     First phase: 1556-1576 AD: Policy of neutrality

At this time, the Mughal Emperor had not yet established complete dominance over North India, hence he continued to follow the policy of neutrality without paying special attention to the activities of the Sultans of the South.

During this period, the Sultans of Khandesh and Berar not only gave refuge to Sultan Baz Bahadur of Malwa in their kingdom against the Mughal Emperor but also helped him and got him the kingdom of Malwa.

Apart from this, Sultan Murtaza Nizamshah of Ahmednagar captured Berar in 1574 AD, although Mughal Emperor Akbar had ordered Murtaza Nizamshah to leave Berar, but Murtaza Nizamshah ignored it and included Berar in Ahmednagar.

Mughal Emperor Akbar did not express any reaction on the above mentioned anti-Mughal conduct of the Sultans of the South, but remained calm and neutral and concentrated on solving his other problems in North India. Apart from this, he left his relations with the sultans and states of the south to the future.

                         Second phase till 1576-1584 AD: Policy of observation

During this period, Mughal Emperor Akbar had only formal relations with the Sultans of South Indian states of Khandesh, Bijapur, Ahmednagar and Golconda.

Mughal messengers went to the court of the southern Sultans from time to time and out of courtesy the southern Sultans also sent their messengers and gifts to the court of the Mughal Emperor Akbar.

Although during this period, as an exception, a Mughal military campaign was carried out against Khandesh in 1576 AD, but soon a treaty was established between the Mughal Empire and Khandesh. The Mughal side benefited more from this treaty.

The Sultan of Khandesh (Raja Ali Khan) became a lifelong friend of the Mughal Empire.

From 1576 to 1584 AD, Mughal Emperor Akbar appears to have been satisfied with formally exchanging envoys and gifts at the diplomatic level with the Sultans of the South.

                  Third phase: 1584-1591 AD: Policy of partial intervention

In these seven years, the Mughal Emperor followed a policy of indirect intervention with the Sultans of South India. In fact, the Mughal emperor's relations with the southern states of Khandesh, Ahmednagar, Bijapur and Golconda during this period were limited to his relations with the Ahmednagar state. The entire attention of the Mughal emperor remained on the activities of Ahmednagar.

During this period, on one hand, Mughal Emperor Akbar Burhan wanted to establish Mughal control over Ahmednagar indirectly through Nizamshah. At the same time, Burhan Nizamshah could gain power in Ahmednagar with the indirect support of the Mughal Emperor.

But after this he did not accept the sovereignty of Mughal Emperor Akbar and started behaving independently. Mughal Emperor Akbar did not like this behavior of Burhan Nizamshah.

Secondly, Akbar had solved the problems of North India. Therefore, he reestablished his relations with the sultanates of South India. In this phase the Mughal emperor only indirectly interfered with the southern sultanates.

                   Fourth phase: 1591-1605 AD: Policy of direct intervention

In 1591 four missions were sent to the four Deccani rulers.

Khandesh- Faizi

The ruler of Khandesh, Raja Ali, accepted Mughal-suzerainty, and sent his daughter in marriage.

Ahmadnagar- Khwaza Aminuddin

In fact, Burhan Nizam Shah was rude: he sent no presents, and brusquely dismissed the Mughal envoy. Because knowing that Akbar was too busy in the north-west to take any stern action against them.

Bizapur- Mir Muhammad Masudi

Golkunda- Mirza Masudi

The other missions came back with presents and letters of goodwill.

The failure of Akbar's diplomatic offensive of 1591 postulated a more active intervention in the Deccan.

    Akbar's search for opportune time and civil strife in Deccan

In 1595, Burhan Nizam Shah died and was succeeded by his son, Ibrahim. Ibrahim Nizam Shah renewed the war with Bijapur over Sholapur, but he was defeated and lost his life in the battle.

Various contenders to the throne now arose: Mian Manju, who was the Peshwa and leader of the Deccani party, put forward his own candidate, though he was a mere pretender, not belonging to the Nizam Shahi dynasty.

Chand Bibi, sister of Burhan Nizam Shah, who had been married to the Adil Shahi ruler in 1564, supported by the Habshi party favoured the claim of Bahadur, the infant son of the late king, Ibrahim Nizam Shah.

Miyan Manju the leader of the Deccani party, appealed to the Mughals for help. Akbar had already geared himself to invade the Deccan.

                                           First siege of Ahmednagar

Diplomacy- Raja Ali, the ruler of Khandesh, joined Mughals.

Campaign- The campaign was led by Abdur Rahim Khan-i-Khanam. Due to internal differences among the Nizam Shahi nobles, the Mughals faced no opposition till they reached Ahmadnagar.

Betrayal, Regret and Patriotism- But on their approach, Miyan Manju felt sorry that he had invited them, and decided to join hands with Chand Bibi to resist them. Chand Bibi also appealed to Bijapur and Golconda for help.

War- The arrival of a Bijapuri force of seven thousand enabled Chand Bibi to offer a valiant defence: After a close siege of four months, Chand Bibi was forced to an agreement.

Treaty-

1.     whereby Berar was ceded to the Mughals.

2.     The infant, Bahadur Nizam Shah, was acknowledged as the ruler under her Regency.

3.      Mughal suzerainty was accepted. This was in 1596.

Cause of Treary-

Mughals accepted this compromise partly because of the presence of a strong Bijapur-Golconda force at the frontier.  So, neither side was satisfied with this agreement.

                                     Second siege of Ahmednagar

Cause

Mughal-The Mughals were keen to get Balaghat which had been a bone of contention between Gujarat and Ahmadnagar.

1.     One group of Ahmadnagar opposed the handing over of Berar to the Mughals.

2.     While another group led by the Wakil and Peshwa, Muhammad Khan, opened negotiations with the Mughals.

3.     Chand Bibi sent urgent messages to the rulers of Bijapur and Golconda to send reinforcements for her help.

4.     The rulers of Bijapur and Golconda responded, because they felt, not without reason, that Berar would give the Mughals a permanent foothold in the Deccan which enlarged upon at any time.

War-

Hence, a combined force of Bijapur, Golconda and Ahmadnagar, led by a Bijapur commander, Suhail Khan, entered Berar in strength.

Result- Defeated

In a hard-fought battle in 1597 at Sonepat, the Mughals defeated a Deccani force three times their number.

Left in bad times-

The Bijapuri and Golconda forces now withdrew, leaving Chand Bibi alone to face the situation.

Surrender, Compromise and Murder-

Although Chand Bibi was in favour of observing the treaty of 1596, she could not stop harassing attacks on the Mughals in Berar by her nobles.

This resulted in a another Mughal siege of Ahmadnagar. In the absence of help from any quarter, Chand Bibi decided to surrender the fort, and opened negotiations with the Mughals, demanding grant of a mansab and a jagir in Ahmadnagar to Bahadur as a subordinate ruler, with herself remaining his guardian.

She was, however, accused of treachery by the faction hostile to her, and was murdered. Thus, ended the life of one of the most romantic figures in Deccani politics.

What the Mughals got- The Mughals now assaulted and captured Ahmednagar. The boy king, Bahadur, was sent to the fortress of Gwalior.

Ahmednagar fort and the areas adjacent to it were surrendered to the Mughals. Balaghat including. Daultabad which had been claimed by the Mughals earlier, was also added to the empire, and a Mughal garrison was stationed at Ahmednagar. This was in 1600.

                                              Khandesh

Causes

1. In 1600, Akbar had advanced into Malwa and then into Khandesh to study the situation on the spot. In Khandesh he learnt that the new ruler of Khandesh. Miran Bahadur, had not shown due respect to Prince Daniyal when he had passed through the territory on his way to Ahmadnagar.

2. Worse, though summoned repeatedly, he did not appear before Akbar.

3. However, the main factor in Akbar's taking action again Bahadur was his desire to secure the fort of Asirgarh in Khandesh which was reputed to be the strongest fort in the Deccan.

4. He was also keen to annex Khandesh, with its capital Burhanpur which was a point of entry into the Deccan.

5. Khandesh, was also the hinterland of Surat and the Gujarat seaports, the route from Agra to Surat passing through Burhanpur.

                  Siege of Asirgarh (February 1600–6 January 1601)

Leadership of campaign

After reaching the capital Burhanpur, Akbar ordered to siege the fort of Asirgarh at the end of February 1600.

This siege was carried out under the joint leadership of Khan-i-Azam, Asaf Khan, Murtaza Khan and Jani Beg of Thatta. Soon Abul Fazal also joined him.

Position of the fort

According to Abul Fazal, "There is no other fort which has such a rich collection, such a number of guns, so many guards and defense materials. The special thing is that despite His Majesty not having the means to siege it, he did so”.

Akbar's leadership

The siege continued for months. Therefore, it is no surprise that Akbar was forced to take the reins of this action into his own hands.

It was in Asirgarh that Akbar received the information that Ahmednagar had been conquered.

Deception and Fraud

Knowing that the fort of Asirgarh was almost invincible, Akbar resorted to bribery and deceit to achieve his goal.

Miran Bahadur's army leaders and messengers were bribed. And on the assurance of the letter of resignation, he was induced to come out of the fort to talk to the Mughal emperor.

But Miran Bahadur was stopped in the Mughal camp and forced to sign a letter purporting to order the besieged army to hand over fort to the Mughals.

Mukarrab Khan, commander of the fort, who had come to the Mughal camp as a messenger, was killed without reason.

This was Akbar's last victory which was achieved unfairly.

Result

Khandesh was annexed to the Mughal Empire and Miran Bahadur was imprisoned and sent to the fort of Gwalior.

Prince Daniyal was appointed the governor of Malwa and Gujarat and the entire Mughal territory of Deccan (including Khandesh) was named Danadesh in his name.

Akbar returned to Fatehpur Sikri on August 1, 1601 where he ordered the construction of the famous Buland Darwaza to commemorate his victory over Asirgarh.

                                  Others

After the fall of Asirgarh, Akbar again sent envoys to the rulers of Bijapur, Golconda and Bidar to persuade them to "make binding treaties of obedience."

None of the rulers agreed to do so. However, the ruler of Bijapur reluctantly agreed to send his daughter to the haram of Prince Daniyal, the Mughal viceroy in the Deccan.

Meanwhile, in order to deal with the rebellion of Prince Salim, Akbar had to return to Agra.

Akbar's hope of befriending Bijapur, the most powerful and influential kingdom in the Deccan, could not be realized.

                                  Evaluation

 

According to RP Tripathi, in Akbar's southern policy we do not find a personal ambitious desire for victory but in it we get a glimpse of the enlightened policy of a great emperor.