Theory and Practice of Muslim State in India c6.3

c6.3

Muslim rule in India has been conveniently divided into two periods, the Sultanate of Delhi (1206-1526) and the Mughal empire (1526-1707). it continued up to 1857, though in the later stages only nominally. When the Sultanate was established, it carried with it the experience gained by the Arab rule in Sindh and the Ghaznavid rule in Punjab of about two centuries. Meanwhile a well-developed statecraft had sprung up in Muslim countries during the seventh to the twelfth centuries. This was mainly due to the universality of Islamic law. The Ghazni and Delhi sultanates cannot be isolated from the rest of the Muslim states particularly in the functioning of their institutions. There were parallel and sometimes identical institutions under the kingdoms of Ghazni and Delhi. The Sultanate of Delhi may not have possessed uninterrupted political continuity; its boundaries also constantly changed. As political entity, however, the Sultanate received sustenance from the evolution of institutions abroad and at home. The Mughal empire too in its early years lacked stability. But from Akbar (1556-1605) onwards there was undisturbed one dynasty rule. Its geographical boundaries also expanded and there was further growth of Islamic administrative institutions.