Theory and Practice of Muslim State in India c7.s2.24

c7.s2.24

In such a scenario, the responsibility of punishing the guilty fell on the Qazis or Muslim judges. Judges of medieval India were, generally speaking, not held in high esteem in high circles. Some lacked erudition, others integrity. Maulana Shamsuddin Turk, a theologian hailing from Egypt in the fourteenth century, complained "that ill-fated wiseacres of black faces sat in the mosques with abominable books and made money by cheating both the accuser and the accused... "⁹⁷ At home they were accused of being bereft of dignity and being altogether worthless.⁹⁸ The sultans even used to punish the Qazis quite often. European travellers visiting India during the Mughal period like William Finch, Edward Terry and Francois Bernier are also critical of medieval judicial officers. They are criticised either for ignorance of law or cruelty or corruption.⁹⁹