The Cambridge History of India, Vol. IV: The Mughul Period v4.c16.176

v4.c16.176

It was to him that Salīm attributed the estrangement between himself and his father, and when he heard that his enemy was to be consulted he was convinced that Akbar would be urged to put forth all his strength to destroy him. He therefore sent for Bīr Singh, the Bundelā, of Orchha, who was in his service, and ordered him to intercept Abu-’l-Fazl before he could reach the capital, and to put him to death. Bīr Singh accepted the commission, and on 19 August, 1602, waylaid Abu-’l-Fazl between Barkī Sarāī (25° 58½ʹ N., 78° 10½ʹ E.) and Antrī (26° 3½ʹ N., 78° 3½ʹ E.). He was an easy victim, for, though he had been warned that mischief was afoot, he refused to travel more rapidly, to alter his route, or to provide himself with a sufficient escort. Bīr Singh severed his head from his body, and sent it to Salīm, who received it with joy and treated it with insult. In his memoirs he describes the murder with unblushing effrontery and attributes the assassin’s success to God’s grace.¹