The Cambridge History of India, Vol. IV: The Mughul Period v4.c15.34

v4.c15.34

Bairam Khān's treatment of Pīr Muhammad was not his only crime in the eyes of the harem party. Almost immediately after this event he appointed Shaikh Gadāī, a Shaikh with no special qualifications, to the important post of *Sadr-us-Sudūr*, fourth in importance in the empire. The *Sadr* was the chief law officer and ecclesiastic and controlled all grants, endowments and allowances. The appointment raised a storm of protest from the orthodox, among the most prominent of whom was "the foster-father cohort", and contributed more than any other measure of Bairam Khān to his downfall.