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When salt was costlier than ghee
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Largely known for despotism and orthodoxy, Alauddin Khilji had a humane side as well, says R.V. Smith
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When son et lumiere first came to Delhi, the Red Fort became the main attraction. That was in the early 1960s. Then it was the turn of Hauz Khas. One spent an evening there and the nip in the air added to the enjoyment of the dance, music and of course dinner. For those sitting near the L-shaped monument, built around the Hauz Khas to Alauddin Khilji, the Slave Dynasty did not seem all that distant even in the late 1990s.
In such situations one has to give a free rein to fancy and enjoy the fun, an escapist exercise though it may be in present day circumstances when life throws up so many problems. Not that the days of Alauddin were problem-free. There were wars, massacres, cloak-and-dagger mysteries and sufferings. But at least there was no pollution. The air was pure and so was the water, and there were no congested localities and roads where death now rides in pomp on rashly driven vehicles. It was horses all the way then, and bullock carts and camel carts for families on an outing.
Alauddin, despite his cruel nature, orthodoxy and despotism, was surprisingly enough a good ruler. In his days one could buy a slave boy for 20 or 30 tankas, and even bring him up as a son in case one did not have children of one's own. A maund of wheat cost 7.5 jitals, and 2.5 seers of ghee a mere one jital. Sugar and salt were comparatively expensive though at 1.5 jitals per seer and 2-1/4 seers for 5 jitals. But a milch cow could be bought for just three or four tankas. Both the tanka and jital were slightly more that a rupee.
Eye on traders
Contemporary historian Ziauddin Barani goes on to add that the emperor, despite the fact that he was busy with military campaigns and conquests, did manage to find the time to keep an eye on traders so that life did not become unbearable for his subject.
As one watched the illuminated monument one was reminded of those medieval tomes when the hall of 1000 pillars stood in all its majesty. After Alauddin's death his general, Malik Kafur, a eunuch whom he had bought for a thousand dinars in Gujarat, tried to set up a child Shihaluddin Omar, on the throne in preference to heir apparent Khiza Khan, with tragic consequences.
Then followed the sham reign of Mubarak Khan, a depraved son of Alauddin. He, however, met his end at the hands of his favourite, Khusrau Khan, a Hindu convert, who staged a bloody midnight coup. But a dashing young courtier, Fakhruddin Mohammed Juna, escaped the massacre and helped his father to slay the usurper and lay the foundations of the Tughlaq dynasty. Juna attained fame as Mohammad Bin Tughlaq.
Timur the Lame, even more ferocious than Alauddin, saw the Hauz Khas complex and thought it grand.
Would Timur have been able to conquer Delhi had he come during the reign Alauddin, who had beaten back the Mongol hordes so many times?
As one wondered, the monument glittered in patches, belying its seven centuries of existence and coming alive, but for the voices of the slave boys and the teachers of the madarasa, many of whom rest in unmarked graves.
They are all part of the dream that was woven by the sound-and-light effect. The madarasa was built by Feroz Tughlaq, who may be regarded as the great archaeological conservationist of his times - repairing not only the Qutab Minar but also many other monuments, including the Hauz Khas of Alauddin Khilji.
Ban on alcohol
Incidentally, Alauddin banned the use of alcohol in his capital. According to Dr. Ishwari Prasad, he had a well dug near the Badaon Gate, "in which all wine-bibbers and sellers were to be thrown." Prohibition during his reign was so strict that one drank at the risk of one's life. However, soon after the Sultan's death, his debauched successors piled themselves with drink every evening, with the gay befriending boys and others enjoying the company of women of easy virtue in the royal palace. This goes to show that love for the bottle and forbidden pleasures could not be entirely stamped out by Alauddin.
When one saw the Hauz Khas programme years ago, it did impress the senses, though it was not possible to show the Badaon Gate and the well, where the drunkards and the bootleggers got a taste of hell. Close by was Sarai Adl where trade in goods was done on a large scale. But for buying costly stuff one had to get permission from the Dewan of the market.
This was a safeguard against ill-gotten wealth on people becoming spendthrifts and eventually paupers who needed relief, thus becoming a drain on State resources. It is worth mentioning that the Sultan provided the same trading rights to Muslim and Hindu traders. But the state was partial to Multani traders, who were given advances from the public treasury. Even today Multani traders are supposed to be among the shrewdest.
One did not see them in the son et lumiere, though a Multani `dhanda' exists in Paharganj.
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