THE MONGOLS, KHILJIS AND THE LAL MAHARA MONUMENTS – CAN THERE BY A REASONABLE ANALYSIS BASED ON HISTORY?

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So much is there in Pakistan, but the passion of the scholars is missing now. Once upon a time Pakistan boasted of exceptional scholars and their analysis was always full of insight. But the two-nation theory daunts objective research. Historical distortion is inevitable because truth is not sought. And that is why truth does not set us free. It entangles in continued petty rivalries. We have an extensive library and excess to knowledge, and with back ground of scholars like Dr Ahmad Dani, Dr Muhammed Baqir, Maulvi Shafi, Dr Waheed Qureshi, Dr Abdullah Chaghatai and many others. And we are not afraid of giving our version for fear of ridicule from already ridiculed scholars. So, we start from an exceptional book on Sultan Allaudin Khilji by Dr Ghulam Sarwar Khan Niazi Sahib. And references to three contemporary scholars like Isami, Barani and Amir Khusro. And the close relation woven with the newly converted Muslim Mongols, and the new laws governing these relations.  The narrative is quite different from the stereotype description of Mongols and Khiljis. But the findings are so new to be unbelievable.

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It seems Sultan Jalaludin Khilji was a kind hearted King and when he received a delegation from the Alikhani’d Mongols in Tabrez, he welcomed them whole heartedly. He gave the Mongol leader Arghun Khan, the hand of his daughter, and living space in Mughalpura, Delhi. He also gave the ownership of four villages in North Western frontier to carve trade relations with them, and allowed them to remit profits back to Tabriz on their own. Such a deal cannot even be imagined today, for Mongols were not trusted in any way, and even though their conversion to Islam was there, they were considered dirty people. Changiz Khans four sons and eight daughters and an old mother (Hoelun) was full of problems. The women were even more strong than the sons and had vast armies of their own. In the course of a few generations, conversion to Islam was in their favour and they won the respect of Delhi Sultans. But when Jalaluddin Khilji was assassinated by mistake, everything turned upside down. Arghun Khan, grandson of Halaku Khan was heartbroken and long with his thousands of troops, lost faith in the New Sultan. Although defeated at times and given special favours, they were not trusted, and finally about ten thousand of these Muslim Mongols were blinded and assassinated in a massive way. Isami and Barani both commented on this injustice in their own way.

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So, whose graves are there in Lal Mahara monuments in North West Frontier. If we look at the tradition of buildings at that time, we see the Mongol look in them. These villages were given to Alikhani’d by Sultan Jalaluddin Khilji. And when assassinated, probably they were commemorated with graves in their own traditions. If we look at the monuments built before and at that period, we see the Mongol look in them. And we also note the sad end to these Muslim Mongols as witnessed by many historians at that time. Today it reminds us of a period unknown to us and open to guess work only.