Growth of Muslim Population in Medieval India, A.D. 1000–1800 c6.s1.27

c6.s1.27

Only one more case may be examined. Muhammad Aslam's *Farhat-un Nazirin*, written in 1770-71, is a contemporary work for the 1761 Battle of Panipat But when the author says that "The dead lay strewn shoulder to shoulder from the plain of Panipat to Delhi. About ninety thousand persons, male and female, were taken prisoners, and obtained eternal happiness by embracing the Muhammadan faith. Indeed, never was such splendid victory achieved from the time of Amir Mahmud Subuktigin...",¹⁹ he appears to be trying to convince us about the large number converted, but fails to impress. No other contemporary work (and there are quite a few for this Battle) mentions proselytization on such a large scale. The author exaggerates, but how much discount could be given to the number of the converted is difficult to determine. Were this the figure for conversions and deportations during *all* the campaigns of Abdali in the Punjab, it could be believed.