The Administration of the Sultanate of Dehli c8.95

c8.95

Generally the form of an election was maintained by the sultans of Dehlī. The nobles and the learned and most influential theologians at the capital agreed upon a candidate and proclaimed him the sultan. Then a formal oath of allegiance was sworn by them and, later, by the populace.⁴ Of course this was often an election only in name because the candidate had already decided the issue by conquest in battle or by overwhelming force; but it had the advantage of being legal and conforming to the wishes of the jurists and the people. It should not be forgotten that another force was at work; most of the sultans were Turks and, in spite of their zeal for Islam, Turkish and tribal ideas still influenced their minds. The nobles did not always take hereditary rights into consideration, for not many sultans were succeeded by their sons; but they did try to limit their choice to the ruling house. The changes in the dynasties seem to have been fortunate, which proves that they were not made without reasons of state. Even when a successful warrior like Jalāl-u’d-dīn Fīrūz Khaljī raised himself to the throne, the outward form of election was maintained.¹ The Turks did not like the coming of the Khaljīs to power, and the sultan was not popular with the populace. It seems, therefore, that a large number of people did not take the oath of allegiance for some time; but the more important elements soon began to co-operate. Actually there was a legal loophole which the sultan could have utilized. The later jurists had recognized ‘election by force or usurpation’ which created a sanction for seizing power by force; that it was not employed shows the strong sense of political decency among the ruling class.