History of the Khaljis, A.D. 1290–1320 c19.26

c19.26

What could this monarch achieve for the Turkish Sultanate in India during his rule of a score years? It is generally believed that 'Alāuddīn left nothing of permanence. According to the contemporary Shaikh Bashīr Divānā, 'Alāuddīn's government had no stable foundation and the Khaljī dynasty was easily supplanted because of the inherent weaknesses of the 'Alāī rule. There is no doubt that 'Alāuddīn's administrative system had its defects. His government was one man's rule, and as Sir Jadunath aptly remarks "a government of personal discretion is, by its very nature, uncertain.¹¹ 'Alāuddīn's rule was based on force, not on will of the people. The king was only feared and obeyed but not loved or respected. The sultan neglected the economic prosperity of the state and just to benefit his military (and as a concommitant non-military) population, he killed every incentive to trade and commerce. Under his regulations the traders had neither freedom of movement nor hope of profit. He put the peasantry to utmost exertions. His vigorous spy system made people's life distasteful, and the suppression of baronage left the government in a paralytic state when the emperor's eyes were closed. But all these accusations do not seem to hold water when a careful and critical analysis of his solid achievements is made. 'Alāūddīn had achieved much. His imperialistic policy had turned a small kingdom, as the sultanate of Delhi was, into an empire comprising of the major portion of India. He was the first ruler whose political hegemony extended over a major portion of the Deccan peninsula. He dealt a death blow to the Mughal aggrandisement which not only stood in the way of the expansion of the Turkish arms, [but threatened the very existence of Muslim rule in this country.] If some of the kingdoms 'Alāuddīn conquered became independent about the time of his death it did not mean that 'Alāuddīn's achievements were mean. He had curbed the power of the Hindu Rajas in the far off south, and had it not been for his success in that region, a debauch like Qutbuddin could never have marched to Devagiri and flayed alive Harpal Deva. 'Alāuddīn's work at least had permanent results if his conquests were not permanent. It was 'Alāuddīn who had exhibited to his successors the vulnerability of the states beyond the Vindhyas. His system of administration had enabled him successfully to rule the country for two decades, and its value is judged by the fact that most of his administrative measures served as models for later monarchs. Barani aptly enumerates the glorious features particular to 'Alāuddīn's regime, which are not to be found in the rule of any other king. The first special feature of 'Alāuddīn's times is the cheapness of the necessaries of life and fixed rates of grains in seasons of plenty and scarcity; the second is the unbroken chain of victories which the king and his commanders obtained, and it appeared as if victory preceded a military enterprise; the third is the crushing of the Mongols; the fourth is that a large force remained calm and contended on a small salary; the fifth is that contumacious landholders were suppressed; the sixth is that roads and highways became safe, and those who used to rob were made to guard them; seventh, that the traders were compelled to be honest; eighth is the abundance of strong buildings; ninth, that Hindus were compelled into obedience and Muslims had become true, abstemious and just; and the tenth is the congregation of artists and learned men such as had not been found to exist in any other reign.