Fall of the Mughal Empire v3.c38.s9.4

v3.c38.s9.4

On 23rd October Afrāsiyāb visited Mahadji in his camp at Rupbās, and next day the Maratha chief returned the compliment. On 26th Oct., Afrāsiyāb paid a second visit to Sindhia, who presented to him the English officers in attendance on him,—Lt. James Anderson, Clerk and Stuart. The two principals held a secret discussion for hours together on their future plans. Afrāsiyāb passionately appealed to Sindhia to regulate the crumbling imperial State; he called Mahadji his father and urged him to save him by crushing Hamadāni. At a whisper from the diplomatic Himmat Bahadur, the Mir Bakhshi now promptly gave up those two disputed districts as a present to his new mother, Sindhia's wife! Thus everybody's face was saved, and Mahadji gladly cemented the alliance. It was agreed that the Marathas would blockade Muhammad Beg's camp, cut off its food supply and starve him into complete submission.*