History of the Qaraunah Turks in India c13.62

c13.62

But he was strong-minded enough not to condone their offences which implied an encroachment upon his authority or interfered with the efficient administration of justice which he desired above everything else. Barani gives us no hint why the members of the sacerdotal order were punished so severely; while there are instances in which political offenders were let off with extraordinary leniency. Barani and Ibn Batūṭah both give detailed accounts of the rebellions of the reign from which it appears that even in case of serious offences against the state the malefactors escaped with a light penalty or secured total pardon. The Sultan's treatment of Nusrat Khan and 'Ain-al-Mulk, who were restored to favour in spite of their rebellions, was certainly more humane than that of many other mediæval rulers in similar circumstances. He pardoned even the clericals, but when they persisted in mischief, he laid his hands freely upon them. Often did he find that his confidence was betrayed by men whom he had raised to honour and eminence. Their perversity and disloyalty exasperated him so that he was at times obliged to have recourse to drastic measures in order to vindicate his own authority. In such circumstances when chronic disorder prevailed in the empire, he lost his balance of mind and behaved with extraordinary harshness towards those who failed to respond to his demands or to carry out his orders.