The Cambridge History of India, Vol. IV: The Mughul Period v4.c22.21

v4.c22.21

Under Muslim rule large areas of the country were left in the possession of Hindu chiefs who had, at any rate, a claim to sovereignty, but had submitted to the Muslim rulers on terms which preserved to them internal jurisdiction; these terms might include the payment of a fixed tribute, or merely the personal service of the chief with his troops, but in either case the Muslim administration did not ordinarily interfere with assessment or collection of the revenue, so long as the terms were observed. If a chief defaulted, the result was ordinarily a punitive expedition, and either his displacement or a revision of the terms previously in force; but so long as he remained loyal, he enjoyed the revenue of his territories subject to the payment of the stipulated tribute, if any.