The Delhi Sultanate, the Mogul Empire and the Modern States
Within the general rubric of the Delhi Sultanate are included five dynasties that ruled north India from Qutbuddin Aibek onwards: Mamluks (1210-90); Khaljis (1290-1320); Tughluqs (1320-1413); Saiyyids (1414-51); and Lodis (1451-1526).
They all had Turko-Afghan origins and in terms of the nature of state organisation they represent certain elements of continuity. The Delhi sultans attempted to control the centrifugal forces prevalent in Rajput India: they tried to liquidate feudal fiefs and established a centralised monarchy with a system of appointment, promotion and transfer of officers. The Mamluk state was basically racist: power rested with the Turks alone and slaves occupied an important position in the governing class. Sultan Iltutmish (1210-36) was the first to seek an Islamic legitimation for his authority when, in 1229, he sought and obtained an investiture from the Caliph of Baghdad. Iltutmish conquered Bihar, Rajputana and Multan. The Khaljis incorporated various sections of Indian society within the power structure and in that sense transformed the state into an Indo-Muslim state. Alauddin (1296-1316), the most famous Khalji sultan, introduced significant changes in the collection of land revenue, attempted to control prices of essential commodities, embarked on an era of expansion of the empire and was the first ruler to try and enforce prohibition—a measure not born out of religious zeal but the need to control the nobility. Alauddin established diplomatic relations with the Il-Khanids and their famous historian, Rashiduddin Fazlullah, visited his court as an emissary. Muhammad bin Tughluq (1324—51) marked the next stage in the evolution of the Indo-Muslim state when he admitted nonMuslims to military and government offices and ensured complete religious freedom to all. He conquered parts of the Deccan and even tried to build an outpost of Indo-Islamic culture in the south by attempting to create a second capital at Daulatabad. He established diplomatic relations with the Asiatic powers, strengthened the political and administrative unity of the country, introduced token currency and welcomed scholars from various parts of the Islamic world. The two centuries following Muhammad bin Tughluq witnessed the invasion of Timur (1398), the rise of Saiyyids (1414—51) and Lodis (1451-1526) as well as of small, independent regional principalities. In the growth of Islamic culture and society in the sub-continent, the provincial dynasties of the Deccan, Gujarat, Malwa, Bengal and Jaunpur have performed a significant function. At the time of decadence of the sultanate, they kept the vitality of Muslim political authority intact on the peripheries of the empire. To varying degrees they articulated and Islamised local sentiments, traditions and art forms. Under their patronage, regional languages developed, creating new vehicles for the transmission of ideas. Regional dynasts patronised saints, made huge endowments, and generally facilitated the flowering of an urban aristocratic Indo-Islamic culture. Some of the noteworthy provincial dynasties were the Bahmanis (1347-1686) in Bijapur; the Qutb Shahis (1491-1688) in Golconda; and the Husain Shahis (14941538) in Bengal.The last of the five dynasties of the Delhi Sultanate, the Lodi, was swept aside in 1526 by the successful forces of Babar who laid the foundation of the Mogul empire. Except for a brief interregnum when Babar’s son Humayun was displaced by the Afghan ruler Sher Shah, the Moguls ruled the sub-continent in their full glory until the death of Aurang- zeb in 1707. For a century thereafter the dynasty survived with fluctuating fortunes in the face of strident and assertive regional forces. In 1803, the Mogul emperor virtually became a puppet in the hands of the English East India Company but he tottered on until finally the British Crown took over in 1857.
The Moguls ensured religious freedom to all people. Akbar (1556-1605) entered into matrimonial alliances with the Hindus, patronised temples and received Jesuit missionaries.
Aurangzeb (d. 1707), the last of the Great Moguls, reimposedjiziya (poll-tax) on the non-Muslims but freedom of opportunity continued. The Moguls dismantled the racist governing class of the sultans, in some ways bureaucratised the nobility, embarked on a large-scale expansion of the empire and greatly patronised arts and architecture. Mogul culture was truly cosmopolitan: Turkish, Iranian and Indian elements were equally present in it. The imperial court set the cultural pattern for the urban elite but there were also other institutions, such as the diwan khanas, which articulated it. With the decline of centralised Mogul authority, regional princely states such as Hyderabad and Awadh assumed virtual independence, though for a long time they continued to pay token allegiance to Delhi. The British entered into alliances with these states and incorporated them into a network of collaboration. For quite some time, after the decline of Mogul authority, these princely states provided alternative patronage to Indo-Islamic culture and stood out as the symbols of Muslim political and cultural dominance in the sub-continent.In 1857, Indian soldiers serving in the army of the English East India Company joined hands with large sections of the popula- don in a big uprising against foreign domination. This has been described by British historians as a mutiny, and by the nationalist historians as a war of independence. The uprising was mainly centred in north India and was successfully suppressed by the British forces. Muslims, who had played a prominent part in it, bore the brunt of the repressions that followed: thousands were hanged and shot; many had their lands confiscated; and the community generally came under suspicion. The Mogul emperor who was considered to be the rallying point for opposition to foreign rule was deposed and sent to Burma. In the post-1857 period, Muslim leaders like Sir Syed Ahmad Khan tried to ameliorate the position of their community by exhorting Muslims to take to modern education, to improve their social and economic position, and above all to adopt a loyalist attitude towards the British.
When, in December 1885, the Indian National Congress was formed as a channel for the peaceful and constitutional expression of the discontent felt by educated Indians, some Muslims like Badruddin Tyabji participated in it. The Congress soon became the vehicle for the presentation of nationalist aspirations, but in certain quarters it came to be regarded as a predominantly Hindu organisation. In 1906 some Muslims formed a separate body called the All Indian Muslim League as the organ for articulating the political aspirations of Muslims in the sub-continent. It is noteworthy that even after the formation of the League, many Muslims continued to play an important part in the Congress. The Muslim League demanded and secured separate electorates for Muslims. In 1916, it entered into a pact with the Congress to wage a joint struggle for India’s freedom. However, the meeting of ways between the Congress and the Muslim League was short lived. After the First World War, Muslims, supported by other Indians, launched a mass struggle known as the Khilafat movement, in support of the restoration of the Caliphate in Turkey. Maulana Muhammad Ali was the outstanding leader of this movement.
Under the leadership of Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the Muslim League argued that in an independent India with universal adult franchise, Muslims would be swamped by the Hindus and would have no effective say even in their own affairs. Hence, various safeguards were demanded. Politics, personal ambitions, mutual fears and suspicions on either side combined to thwart any agreement. The Muslim League called for a separate homeland for Muslims. This view was not shared by the whole community. Political leaders, like Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, and religious scholars, mainly from Deoband, such as Maulana Husain Ahmad Madani, remained opposed to it. However this demand gained strong support in certain areas and, when the British finally left, the sub-continent was partitioned into two independent countries, India and Pakistan. The latter consisted of West Punjab, Sind, North-West Frontier, Baluchistan and East Bengal. The eastern and western wings of Pakistan were separated by a distance of nearly a thousand miles. Demands for greater provincial autonomy, better distribution of resources and discontent at the unequal economic development of the country at the expense of the eastern wing led, in 1971, to a civil war in Pakistan which finally resulted in a conflict with India. It culminated in the splitting up of Pakistan and the declaration of independence by the eastern wing as the independent state of Bangladesh. Both Bangladesh and Pakistan have a predominantly Muslim population while in India Muslims constitute the single largest minority.