The Cambridge History of India, Vol. IV: The Mughul Period v4.c19.212

v4.c19.212

Abu-’l-Hasan Qutb Shāh was indolent and luxurious, and immediately after his accession all power passed into the hands of his minister, Sayyid Muzaffar, to whom chiefly he owed his throne. The king had sufficient spirit to resent his minister’s dominance and, taking into his confidence Mādanna, a Brāhman who was Sayyid Muzaffar’s chief coadjutor in public affairs, conspired with him to overthrow the minister. The astute Brāhman succeeded and Sayyid Muzaffar was dismissed from his high place, but Abu-’l-Hasan gained little by the change, for Mādanna took his former master’s place and appointed as his colleague his own brother Venkanna¹, and the two Brāhmans soon became more powerful than Sayyid Muzaffar had been. They supported the Deccani party in the state, dismissed most of the Foreigners in the public service, and after a time even ventured to persecute Muslims.