The Legacy of Muslim Rule in India c8.s4.2

c8.s4.2

Indians, or Hindus, too used to be enrolled. Ziyauddin Barani was against the recruitment of non-Muslims in the army,¹²⁰ but right from the days of Mahmud of Ghazni, Hindus used to join Muslim armies,¹²¹ and lend strength to it.¹²² Most of the Hindus in the army belonged to the infantry wing and were called Paiks. Some of these were poor persons and joined the army for the sake of securing employment. Others were slaves and war-captives. The Paiks cleared the jungles and were often used as cannon fodder in battle.¹²³ But others, especially professionals, joined the permanent cadre of infantry for combat purposes. Barbosa (early sixteenth century) says this about them: They carry swords and daggers, bows and arrows. They are right good archers and their bows are long like those of England. They are mostly Hindus.¹²⁴ They were a loyal lot. Alauddin Khalji, Mubarak Khalji and Firoz Tughlaq were saved by Paiks when they were attacked by rivals and adventurers,¹²⁵ a phenomenon so common in Muslim history. But despite their loyalty the Paiks remained relegated to an inferior position.