Short notes on the Position of Mughal Emperor

Short notes on the Position of Mughal Emperor

The Mughal Emperor was the head of the administration. According to the Quranic Theory, the Mughal Emperor was the Ruler of the Muslims only (Amir-ul-Munnin, or Commander of the true believers). He was nominally responsible to the Muslim Public or Jamait of this conduct as a king.

There was no check on his powers, but in actual practice his autocracy was tempered by the fear of rebellion. Customary Law of the country also put a check. The Ulema had the power to depose a king, but their Fatwas were a mere scrap of paper so long as the Mughal Emperor had a strong army at his disposal.

Both Babur and Humayun acted upon the Islamic Theory of kingship, but Akbar rejected the same. Instead of being the Commander of the true-believers only, he decided to become the king of all his subjects. His view was that in spite of thousand virtues, a king cannot be fit for this lofty office, if he does not inaugurate universal peace, and if he does not regard ail classes of men and all sets of religions with a single eye for favour,” (Akbarnama). Akbar also believed that the king was superior to all the human beings and was the shadow and vicar of God.

According to Abul Fazal, “Royalty is a light emanating from god, a ray from the sun, the illuminator of the universe, and argument of the book of perfection, the receptacle of all virtue.” Akbar also believed that there should be a union of religious and secular leadership and that is why he tried to combine that two in his own person. Jahangir followed to some extent the ideal of his father. However, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb again adopted the Islamic Theory of sovereignty.

There was no accepted law of succession among the Mughals. After the death of a king, there was always some trouble. In the case of Shah Jahan, it led to a war of succession among his four sons. The contest was not confined to the sons of the last ruler. It is well-known that when Akbar was lying ill, Prince Khusrau, his grandson, tried to oust his father Jahangir. Even if a person was nominated as his successor by the dying king, it did not carry much weight.

Although Akbar ultimately appointed Jahangir as his successor, Khusrau revolted in the time of Jahangir to claim the throne. Although Jahangir nominated Shahriyar to succeed him, he was ousted by Shah Jahan. Even the eldest son did not always enjoy any special position. Aurangzeb was not the eldest son of Shah Jahan and even then he came to the throne.

It is to be noted that the Mughal Emperor in India did not recognise any Khalifa as a superior overlord. In 1517, the Egyptian Caliph Mutwakki surrendered to Salim of Turkey all symbols of the Caliphate. Mecca and Madina had already been occupied by the Turks. A majority of the Sunnis all over the world began to look upon him as the Caliph. Babur and Humayun took up title of Padshah and were not prepared to accept any superior in the world.

So far as Akbar was concerned, the Khutba was read in his name. He also started the practices of Sijda or prostration on the ground and Zaminbos or kissing the ground in front of the royal throne. In 1579, Akbar was declared as Imami-i-Adil, Amir-ul-Mominin and Mujtahid-i-Ala. The descendants of Akbar also regarded themselves as fully sovereign and did not recognise the superiority of anybody, whether directly or indirectly.

At the time of the succession to the throne, the coronation ceremony was performed. It was not necessary that it must be performed at the capital of the empire. In the case of Akbar, it was performed in the Gurdaspur District of the Punjab. Murad and Shah Shuja proclaimed themselves as kings while away from the capital. When the new king sat on the throne, he was saluted by cries of “Badshah Salamat.”

Very often, the new king took up a new title. Prince Saleem took up the title of Jahangir and Prince Khurram became Shah Jahan. Aurangzeb took up title of Alamgir. The Khutba was read in the name of the king and coins were also struck in his name.

The Mughal Emperors enjoyed many prerogatives. There were some prerogatives which were the exclusive privilege of the sovereign and could in no case be exercised by any other person in the State. Jharokha-i-Darshan was one of those prerogatives. This custom was started by Akbar but was stopped by Aurangzeb. Every morning the emperor appeared at a balcony in the eastern walls of the Agra and Delhi Forts when he was there so that his subjects might have a full view of his face.

Many people looked upon the sovereign as a partial incarnation of God and abstained from food and drink as long as they had not his Darshan. Another prerogative was chauki and Taslim-i-Chauki. The principal nobles of the emperor had to mount guard and go round the palace by turns. They were required to offer obeisance in the direction of the place at stated hours of the night.

Another prerogative was known as Naqqara. When the emperor held court or went out, a powerful kettledrum was beaten. This privilege could be exercised by other nobles with the permission of the King. The emperor along had the prerogative to confer titles on his subordinates.

Amirs and Mansabdars could only recommend suitable persons for this purpose, but, the emperor alone could confer titles. The emperor alone could affix his special seal (Muhar). In special cases, he gave a vermilion print of his palm (Panja) on the Farmans issued by him.

The emperor alone had the prerogative of ordering the mutilation of limbs. The witnessing of elephant fights was a special prerogative of the emperor. The emperor adopted the Hindu practice of Tula-dan or weighing against articles for charities. The emperor alone had the exclusive privilege of weighment against gold and jewels, while the others could get themselves weighed against other things.

The Mughal kings worked very hard. They kept longer hours and enjoyed lesser holidays. The king transacted his business in four different ways. He transacted state business in public while sitting in the Diwan-i-Khas-o-Am. In the Ghusl Khana, the king held confidential consultations with his ministers and other officials as he cared to summon. The Ghusl Khana was a place of retirement for doing important work. Commanders of the expeditions were called to this place before they were sent to the front.

Likewise, governors were summoned to this place before they were ordered to join their appointment. There was a superintendent of the Ghusl Khana whose duty was to see that those who came to the Ghusl Khana observed certain rules of etiquette. Persons guilty of an offence were fined and they were not allowed to leave till they paid the same. In the Ghusl Khana, Akbar had his religious discussions also and Jahangir had his cups of wine.

Sometimes, the King summoned a few of his highest officials inside his private apartments to discuss and dispose of important business with them. Once a week, the King held the court of Justice. This he did on Wednesdays when the Diwan-i-Am-o-Khas was converted into a Court of Justice. The aggrieved persons were presented before the Emperor by the Superintendent of the Court and the King tried to give justice to the people.

The orders of the monarch were issued usually through Farmans. The procedure for drafting the Farmans was very elaborate. Complete records were kept and special attention was paid to their authenticity. If a Farman involved the grant of cash or Jagir care was taken to see that it was passed on to the person for whom it was meant.

There were five kinds of seals which were used for different purposes. One seal was used for titles, high appointments, Jagirs and sanctions of large amounts. Another seal was used for letters to foreign kings. The third seal was used for judicial transactions. The fourth was used for all matters connected with the departments of the palace. The fifth seal was used for all other matters. The most important seal was the Uzuk Sea and it was entrusted to the most dependable person. Some Emperors used to keep the seal with their Queens. In important Farmans, the mark of the royal hand was put at the bottom.

According to S.R. Sharma, “Thought the Mughals came to India as conquerors and foreigners, they set up traditions and conventions which were calculated to endear them to their Indian subjects. The Emperor’s appearance at the Jharokha for popular Darshan daily, the opportunities they offered to the people to approach them with their petitions, their personal attention to minute details of administration, and their regular inspection tours and pageants throughout the Empire, even apart from their generally enlightened and benevolent policy in all matters, served to impart to their autocratic rule the appearance of governments by consent.

This character was largely the creation of Akbar’s statesmanship. It was sustained during the next two reigns of Jahangir and Shah Jahan, but was progressively undermined by the reactionary policy of Aurangzeb. Nevertheless, the main framework of the administrative organisation, though in a considerably attenuated form, endured till the English East India Company stepped into the shoes of the Mughal Emperors.”

According to Jadunath Sarkar, “The Mughal Emperor had no regular Council of Ministers. The Wazir and the Diwan were the richest persons below the Emperor, but the other officers were in no sense his colleagues. They were admittedly inferior to him and deserved rather to be called secretaries than minister. Nearly all their work was liable to revision by the Wazir and Royal orders were often transmitted to him through him.”

It was not necessary for the king to consult his ministers on all occasions. He could act even without them or against them. Neither the ministers nor the wazirs acted as a check on the authority of the king. The Mughal Government was a one-man rule and Aurangzeb was his own Prime Minister.

The Mughal Emperor had to play a double role. He had to governed all the people in his dominions as their king and also act as the missionary, defender and agent of the creed of a section^ of his subjects.