Delhi Sultanate — Set 8

Correct Answer: B. Babur

• **Babur** defeated **Ibrahim Lodi** in **First Battle of Panipat on April 21, 1526** — ended Delhi Sultanate. • Babur used **artillery (matchlock guns and cannons)** — first use of gunpowder weapons in Indian warfare. • This established the **Mughal Empire** in India — Babur wrote about the battle in **Baburnama**. • 💡 Sher Shah = later fought Humayun (not Panipat **1526**); Akbar = Second Battle of Panipat (**1556**); Humayun = Babur's son.

Correct Answer: B. Firoz Shah Tughlaq

• **Firoz Shah Tughlaq** established **Firozabad** (modern Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi) as his capital. • Contains **palaces, mosques, and an Ashokan pillar** brought from Topra — a historical landmark today. • Also built **Jaunpur, Fatehabad, Hissar, Firuzpur** — most city-building Sultan of the Sultanate. • 💡 Alauddin = Siri; Ghiyasuddin = Tughlaqabad; Muhammad bin Tughlaq = Daulatabad; Iltutmish = expanded Delhi.

Correct Answer: C. Diwan-i-Khairat

• **Diwan-i-Khairat** = Charity Department — set up by **Firoz Shah Tughlaq** for welfare activities. • Provided aid for **poor Muslim marriages, orphans, widows** — a welfare-state approach in medieval India. • Firoz also established **Diwan-i-Bandagan** (for slaves) and built canals and hospitals. • 💡 Diwan-i-Bandagan = slaves; Diwan-i-Kohi = agriculture; Diwan-i-Mustakhraj = revenue arrears — not charity.

Correct Answer: A. Nasiruddin Mahmud Tughlaq

• **Nasiruddin Mahmud Tughlaq** was the Sultan when **Timur invaded in 1398 AD**. • He **fled Delhi** as Timur approached — Delhi was sacked and thousands were massacred. • Timur's invasion **collapsed the Tughlaq dynasty**; Sayyid dynasty rose in its vacuum from 1414. • 💡 Firoz Shah Tughlaq = died 1388 (before Timur's invasion); Ghiyasuddin II = brief; Abu Bakr = not during Timur.

Correct Answer: A. Alauddin Khilji

• **Alai Minar** = Alauddin Khilji's unfinished project to build a tower **twice the height of Qutub Minar**. • Left incomplete after **Alauddin's death in 1316** — only the rubble core of the 1st storey survives. • Located near **Qutub Minar complex** — testament to Alauddin's grand ambitions. • 💡 Aibak = started Qutub Minar (completed by Iltutmish); Firoz = repaired it; no one else attempted a new minar.

Correct Answer: B. Alauddin Khilji

• **Dagh** system = branding horses with **royal seal** — introduced by **Alauddin Khilji** to maintain cavalry quality. • Prevented soldiers from **substituting sick horses** with borrowed ones during inspection — curbed fraud. • Paired with **Hilyah** (descriptive roll of soldiers) — both part of Alauddin's army reform package. • 💡 Akbar and Sher Shah also used Dagh later; Balban = Diwan-i-Arz; Firoz = no such army reform.

Correct Answer: A. Muhammad bin Tughlaq

• **Muhammad bin Tughlaq** = **'Prince of Moneyers'** due to ambitious monetary experiments. • Introduced **token copper currency** (failed), issued many coin types with fine Arabic calligraphy. • Despite failures, his coins are numismatically significant — varied in type, metal, and design. • 💡 Iltutmish = introduced Tanka and Jital (success); Sher Shah = silver Rupiya (success); Alauddin = no coin experiment.

Correct Answer: B. Qutub Minar Complex

• **Tomb of Iltutmish** is within the **Qutub Minar complex** in Mehrauli, Delhi — key Slave dynasty monument. • Known for **intricate Arabesque carvings** inside — but **no dome** (the dome collapsed long ago). • This tomb also shows early experiments with the **true arch** — significant in Indo-Islamic architecture history. • 💡 Red Fort = Mughal; Hauz Khas = Alauddin built/Firoz repaired; Lodhi Gardens = Lodi tombs — Iltutmish's tomb is in Qutub complex.

Correct Answer: A. Alauddin Khilji

• **Alauddin Khilji** = first Delhi Sultan to cross the **Vindhyas** and invade the Deccan (South India). • General **Malik Kafur** led the South India campaigns (1309–1311) — defeated Yadavas, Kakatiyas, Hoysalas. • Brought enormous wealth from **Warangal, Dwarasamudra, Madurai** — transformed Delhi's treasury. • 💡 Iltutmish = did not cross Vindhyas; Balban = focused on North; Firoz = Deccan campaigns failed; Alauddin = first.

Correct Answer: C. Religious Affairs

• **Diwan-i-Risalat** = Department of Religious Affairs and Appeals — headed by **Sadr-us-Sudur**. • Dealt with **ecclesiastical matters, charity grants, and petitions** from religious scholars. • Also handled **diplomatic correspondence** with foreign powers in some Sultanate periods. • 💡 Finance = Diwan-i-Wizarat; Military = Diwan-i-Arz; Correspondence = Diwan-i-Insha; Agriculture = Diwan-i-Kohi.