Satish Chandra Test: The Mughal Empire- 1 - Free MCQ with solutions

The correct answer is Option A - 1 only

Mirak Mirza Ghiyas is recorded by contemporary chroniclers, notably Abd al-Qadir Badauni, as the principal architect associated with the design of the mausoleum; this attribution is accepted in standard historical accounts.

The monument was commissioned by Haji Begum in the mid-16th century (around 1570) and is recognised as the earliest example of a garden-tomb on the subcontinent.

Architectural analysis shows clear Persian influences such as the charbagh layout and the double dome, but it also incorporates indigenous Indian elements like raised plinths, chhatris, and extensive use of local red sandstone.

Because the design is attributed to Mirak Mirza Ghiyas (documented) and the building combines Persian and Indian features rather than being purely Persian in style, the first statement is correct and the second statement is incorrect.

The correct answer is Option A - 3-2-4-1

Battle of Karnal occurred in 1739, when Nadir Shah defeated the Mughal army led by Muhammad Shah.

Muhammad Shah died in 1748, after which the empire faced intensified succession struggles and external invasions.

Battle of Buxar was fought in 1764, resulting in a decisive victory for the British East India Company and a major shift in power in northern India.

Tipu Sultan died in 1799 during the fall of Srirangapatna in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War.

Arranging these verified dates chronologically yields 3-2-4-1, which matches Option A.

The correct answer is Option A - 1 and 2 only

Statement 1 is correct: Akbar supported and permitted widow remarriage, taking measures to reduce social stigma and encourage remarriage of widows.

Statement 2 is correct: Akbar introduced regulations to raise the minimum marriageable ages to 14 for girls and 16 for boys to check very early child marriages.

Statement 3 is incorrect: while Akbar discouraged and sought to restrict the practice of sati and took steps to deter it, he did not enact a single, empire-wide blanket prohibition described as an absolute ban in contemporary records; his measures were restrictive rather than an immediate, universal legal ban.

Therefore, only the first two statements are correct.

Correct Option - C

The correct answer is Option C - 3 only

Statement 1 is incorrect. In Mughal administrative and agrarian usage, Jins-i-Kamil generally denoted crops of marked commercial value that contributed significant revenue or were important in trade, not merely the basic subsistence staples.

Statement 2 is incorrect. Although wheat and rice were principal staple foods for the population, contemporary records and revenue practice treat cotton and sugarcane as the crops regarded as Jins-i-Kamilpar excellence because of their high market demand and fiscal importance.

Statement 3 is correct. Various oilseeds, for example mustard, were cultivated for market and included among commercially important crops in Mughal sources, and so were counted within the broader category of Jins-i-Kamil.

Hence, after evaluating each statement against the historical usage and revenue context, only statement 3 is correct.

The correct answer is Option B - 2 only

Statement 1 is incorrect. Historical evidence and recent scholarship indicate that Aurangzeb discouraged or removed singing from public court ceremonies, but he did not institute a blanket ban on the playing of musical instruments; instrumental performances continued in private circles and under the patronage of nobles and members of the royal household.

Statement 2 is correct. A substantial number of Persian-language treatises on classical Indian music were composed during Aurangzeb's period because musical scholarship and writing continued in Persian among courtly and aristocratic circles; at the same time, important stylistic developments and renewed royal patronage of musicians occurred later under Muhammad Shah (1719-48).

Because Statement 1 is false and Statement 2 is true, only 2 is correct, which makes Option B the correct choice.

The correct answer is Option C - 2 and 3 only

Statement 1 is correct. Akbar removed discriminatory levies; he abolished the pilgrim tax on bathing at holy places and the jizya (poll tax on non-Muslims), and he discouraged forcible conversion, as part of policies aimed at greater religious tolerance.

Statement 2 is incorrect. The claim that the majority of great Hindu nobles joined Tauhid-i-Ilahi is wrong; in reality most leading nobles, including many Hindu chiefs, declined to join. Only a small inner group-about 18 disciples-were closely associated with the emperor, and Birbal was one of the few prominent Hindu courtiers who became closely attached to Akbar.

Statement 3 is incorrect. The Ibadat Khana was constructed as a hall for religious discussion and debate; it was intended to facilitate dialogue among scholars and representatives of different faiths, not as an attempt to appease orthodox Islamic scholars. The behaviour of orthodox theologians at the debates often alienated Akbar rather than satisfying orthodox opinion.

Statement 4 is correct. Akbar introduced social measures including raising the minimum marriageable ages to 14 for girls and 16 for boys; he also took steps such as legalising widow remarriage and restricting Sati, although these reforms had limited social success.

The correct answer is Option D - None

Statement 1 is incorrect. The Diwan-i-Kul (or Diwan) was primarily responsible for revenue and finance, including collection, disbursement and financial supervision; matters of military administration were the responsibility of the Mir Bakshi.

Statement 2 is incorrect. The protection and supervision of the Shariat and related religious endowments were duties of the Sadr-us-Sudur, not the Mir Saman. The Mir Saman looked after the royal household, supplies and stores.

Statement 3 is incorrect. The Sadr-us-Sudur dealt with religious affairs and grants; the charge of the royal karkhanas (workshops, stores and procurement for the palace) belonged to the Mir Saman.

Because all three individual statements are false, Option D is the correct choice.

The correct answer is Option D - Neither 1 nor 2

Statement 1 is incorrect: the Ain-i Akbari was written by Abu'l Fazl, who served as Akbar's court historian; Abdul Qadir Badayuni is the author of the Muntakhab-ut-Tawarikh (also known as Tarikh-i-Badauni).

The Ain-i Akbari is effectively the third volume of the Akbarnama and is a systematic survey of the empire's administration, revenue arrangements, household and state organisation; it also records data on the mansabdari system and the military establishment, but it is not primarily a narrative of military campaigns.

Statement 2 is therefore incorrect: although the work includes material on the military, its central purpose was to document administrative and fiscal structures and the organisation of the state rather than to chronicle Emperor Akbar's military campaigns.

Both statements are false, which is why Option D is the correct choice.

The correct answer is Option A - Only one

Statement 1 is incorrect. The Razmnama is the Persian translation of the Mahabharata, produced under the patronage of Akbar in the late 16th century; it is not a Persian version of the Ramayana.

The Razmnama project resulted in richly illustrated manuscript copies; prominent court artists such as Daswanth and Basawan contributed to these manuscripts, and some copies contain about 169 paintings.

Statement 2 is correct. The kitabkhana functioned as the imperial library and workshop (a scriptorium) where manuscripts were copied, illustrated and the royal collection was maintained.

Statement 3 is incorrect. Although manuscript (handwritten) production dominated Mughal courtly culture, the statement is too absolute: printed books were present in India from the 16th century onward through European presses, so it is not true that all books during the Mughal period were handwritten.

Therefore, only one of the three statements is correct.

Correct Option - D

The correct answer is Option D - An underground water management system using gently sloping tunnels to tap groundwater.

The Karez (also known by the Persian term Qanat) is an ancient gravity-based underground water-supply technology used to bring groundwater to the surface without mechanical pumping.

Its basic components are a gently sloping underground tunnel that conveys water and a series of vertical access shafts (spaced at intervals) which provide ventilation, removal of excavated material, and access for maintenance.

Water is drawn from a higher-elevation source or the local water table (often from a deeper mother well) and flows along the tunnel by gravity to emerge at a lower point where it can be used for irrigation and domestic supply.

Because the conduit is underground, the system substantially reduces evaporation losses and protects water from surface contamination, making it especially suitable for arid and semi-arid regions.

Historical diffusion of this technique was from Persia into parts of the Middle East, North Africa and the Indian subcontinent, and medieval Indian examples include Bidar, Vijayapura (Bijapur), Aurangabad and Burhanpur.

The correct answer is Option A - 1 only

Statement 1 is correct: Akbar reorganised the empire into twelve provinces called Subahs, a reorganisation completed around 1580.

Each Subah had a civil and military administration with a Subahdar (governor) responsible for executive and military affairs and a Diwan responsible for revenue and finance; other regular officials included the Bakhshi (military paymaster), Sadr (religious and charitable administration), Qazi (judicial officer) and Waqia-navis (official in charge of reports/records).

Statement 2 is incorrect: Batai and Nasaq were revenue assessment methods or settlement arrangements, not administrative posts.

Batai referred to a division of the actual produce between the state and cultivator (a share-in-kind arrangement), while Nasaq denoted assessment based on past payments or fixed estimates; both terms relate to revenue systems employed in different regions and periods under Mughal administration.

Hence, only the first statement is correct and the second statement is false.

The correct answer is Option B - Only two pairs

Pair 1 is correct: Uluq denotes the mounted relay or horse-post system used for official communication; contemporary travel accounts describe relay stations for mounted couriers at regular intervals.

Pair 2 is correct: Dahsala was introduced under Akbar (around 1580) as a land revenue assessment based on the ten-year average of crop production and prices; the state's demand was fixed broadly at about one-third of the produce (or its cash equivalent).

Pair 3 is incorrect: Zimmis (more correctly rendered as dhimmis) were protected non-Muslim subjects who paid the jizya; they were not religious scholars. Religious scholars are referred to by terms such as ulama.

Therefore, exactly two pairs are correctly matched, which corresponds to Option B.

The correct answer is Option C - Both 1 and 2

Statement 1 is correct: Ahadis were an elite corps recruited into the imperial household and served as the emperor's personal troops, enjoying special trust and direct attachment to the sovereign rather than functioning through the regular mansabdari chain.

Statement 2 is correct: Ahadis were maintained directly by the crown and had a separate payroll and paymaster (muster/pay) arrangements, distinct from the payment and contingents supplied by mansabdars.

For context, Ahadis formed part of the imperial household cavalry and often served as musketeers and archers; they commonly maintained several mounts, in some cases up to five horses, reflecting their privileged and mobile role.

(i) and (ii) only

• In 1646-1647, Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan launched a military expedition to conqueror Balkh and the neighbouring province of Badakhashan. This campaign was to be the first step in the expansion of Mughal rule into Central Asia, where the Ferghana valley lay.
• Ferghana valley was the homeland of the Babur, the first Mughal Emperor and the founder of the dynasty in India.
• Following are the reasons why Emperor Shah Jahan undertook this campaign-
• The first and foremost reason was the proclaimed desire on the part of the Mughal emperors to recover their ancestral lands. As direct descendants of Tamerlane, the Mughals of India considered Central Asia their true home and ancestral domain.
• In 1628, Nazr Mohammed launched a large-scale invasion of Mughal territory with the intention of capturing Kabul. Shahjahan wanted to punish Nar Muhammad the ruler of Balkh and Badakhashan, who had an eye on Kabul.
• Hence, Shah Jahan dispatched an army of 60,000 to Kabul, and then to Badakhshan and Balkh, with his son Murad Baksh as the commander-in-chief. Shahjahan never wanted to enthrone Prince Dara Shukoh as an independent ruler of Balkh.
• Shah Jahan appointed Prince Aurangzeb, then serving as the governor of Gujarat, to lead operations in Central Asia. But he never desired to assign Badakhshan in Jagir to prince Aurangzeb.
• Aurangzeb arrived in Kabul in April 1647 and set out for Balkh to reinforce the Mughal forward positions and expand the campaign. 
• By the middle of 1647, both sides had suffered considerably from the back-and-forth fighting.  Shortly after Aurangzeb had returned to Balkh, negotiations were opened with Nadr Mohammed, the exiled ex-ruler of the territories occupied by the Mughals since 1645.
• A settlement was concluded by Nadr Mohammed's grandsons and Balkh was formally handed over to the grandsons, and the Mughals began the withdrawal to Kabul.

The correct answer is Option B - Only two

Statement 1 is correct. Contemporary records show that the ruler organised state-run trading depots and factories (karkhanas) and placed commerce under state-appointed officials to regulate trade and secure state revenue.

Statement 2 is incorrect. There is no reliable evidence that the state accepted private deposits with guaranteed fixed returns; resource mobilisation relied on state monopolies, taxation, regulation of trade and, at times, forced or compulsory levies rather than formally marketed deposit schemes with fixed yields.

Statement 3 is correct. The administration regulated and promoted exports of commodities such as sandalwood, pepper and cardamom, with sandalwood in particular treated as a state monopoly, as part of efforts to sustain Mysore's foreign trade and reduce dependence on British-controlled channels.

Hence, two statements (the first and the third) are factually correct, while the second is not; therefore the option indicating two correct statements is appropriate.

Correct Option - D

Statement-I is incorrect because the Razmnama is the Persian translation of the Mahabharata, not of the Ramayana.

Statement-II is correct: Emperor Akbar patronised the translation of important Sanskrit works into Persian, commissioning projects to render classical texts for the imperial court.

These translations were produced in the imperial kitabkhana (the scriptorium) as hand-written, illustrated manuscripts under royal patronage.

Artists from the imperial atelier, notably Basawan and Daswanth, worked on the illustrated Persian Razmnama; a celebrated manuscript produced under Akbar's patronage was completed around 1589 and contains about 169 paintings.

Thus, Statement-I is false and Statement-II is true, which corresponds to the correct choice.

The tomb of Jahangir was built after the Mughal emperor's death in 1627 and completed in 1637, in the reign of his son and successor, Shah Jahan, when the Mughal Empire held sway over the entire Indian subcontinent and Lahore was an important urban center.

The sons of Shahjahan who fought in the war of succession in 1657-58 A.D. were Dara Shikoh, Shuja, Aurangzeb, and Murad. These four brothers were all contenders for the Mughal throne after Shahjahan's illness and eventual death in 1657. The war of succession lasted for over a year and ultimately resulted in Aurangzeb's victory and his ascension to the Mughal throne.

Option A is correct. Shahjahan's Central Asian policy was a failure because Qandhar was lost to the Mughals once and for all. This was a significant blow to the Mughal Empire and contributed to the decline of Mughal power in the region. The Mughals also had to vacate Balkh in 1647 and a lot of money was spent on these campaigns, but these were not the primary reasons for the failure of Shahjahan's Central Asian policy.

Option A is correct. The main cause for the war of succession among the four sons of Shahjahan was that the Mughals did not follow any definite law of succession. Shahjahan had not named a successor and the four brothers all believed they had a valid claim to the throne. This led to a power struggle and ultimately resulted in the war of succession in 1657-58 A.D.

When Shah Jahan fell ill, a struggle for the throne started between his four sons - Dara Shikoh, Shah Shuja, Aurangzeb and Murad Baksh. Shuja immediately crowned himself the emperor and took imperial titles, November 1657.
He marched with a large army, backed by a good number of war-boats in the river Ganges. However, he was beaten by Dara's army in a hotly contested Battle of Bahadurpur near Banares (in modern Uttar Pradesh, India). Shuja turned back to Rajmahal to make further preparations. He signed a treaty with his elder brother Dara, which left him in control of Bengal, Orissa and a large part of Bihar, 17 May 1658.
The battle of Dharmat was fought between his sons Dara Shikoh (the eldest son and heir apparent) and his two younger brothers Aurangzeb and Murad Baksh (third and fourth sons of Shah Jahan).
Battle of Samugarh, Jang-e-Samugarh, (May 29, 1658), was a decisive battle in the struggle for the throne during the Mughal war of succession (1658–1659) between the sons of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan after the emperor's serious illness in September 1657.
 

The correct option is Option B.

Birth of Aurangzeb - 3 November 1618

Accession of Aurangzeb - Aurangzeb was the emperor of India from 1658 to 1707, the last of the great Mughal emperors.

Coronation of Aurangzeb - 13 June 1659 at Shalimar Bagh, Delhi

Death of Aurangzeb - 3 March 1707

Aurangzeb, the sixth emperor, re-introduced and levied jizya on non-Muslims in 2nd April ​1679. His goal was to promote Islam and weaken the Hindu religion.

Option A is correct. Aurangzeb appointed special officers called Muhtasibs, whose function was to see that the Muslims led their lives according to the Quranic law. The Muhtasibs were responsible for enforcing Islamic laws and customs, and they had the authority to punish those who violated these laws. The other options listed are incorrect.

Option C is correct. Aurangzeb discouraged painting because he believed it was against the sanctions of Islam. Aurangzeb was a devout Muslim and believed that painting, along with other forms of art, was a form of idolatry and therefore prohibited according to Islamic law. The other options listed are incorrect.

The correct answer is option B. Aurangzeb discontinued the practice of inscribing Kalima on the coins because he believed that it would have been dishonoured by coming under the feet of the people. Aurangzeb was a devout Muslim and believed strongly in the Islamic faith. As part of his beliefs, he believed that it was wrong to have the Kalima (Islamic creed) inscribed on coins, as it would be dishonoured by coming under the feet of the people. He also believed that it would diminish the sanctity of the coins and the Islamic faith. He thus decided to discontinue the practice of inscribing the Kalima on coins, as he believed it would be disrespectful to the faith.

The correct answer is B: It was a Hindu practice. Aurangzeb abolished the practice of Jharokha darshan due to his belief that it was a form of idol worship and a non-Islamic practice. The practice of Jharokha darshan was started by Mughal emperor Akbar, Aurangzeb's great grandfather, as a Hindu tradition in which the emperor would daily address the public audience from a balcony known as a jharokha. Aurangzeb believed that the practice of Jharokha darshan diminished the prestige and authority of the emperor and thus decided to abolish it. He also banned the practice of Tuladan, the practice of weighing the emperor in gold, which was also started by Akbar.

The correct answer is C as all the years are correctly matched with the kings

There were instances where peasants refused to pay land revenue and such villages were designated as mawas and zor-talab. Initially the acts of defiance by the peasantry were mere isolated incidents perhaps due to varied level of distress, but later on in this struggle the peasants and zamidnars usually joined hands. The zatnindars could be chieftains or could be a person having rights over portion of a village, but they formed a distinct class enjoying common rights like commanding armed retainers and were the leader of caste group. Some of these zamidnars' like Shobha Singh's rebellion (1695-98) in Bengal had, in fact, shaken the empire and similarly in Kuch-Behar, Bhim Narayan was able to expel the Mughal troops and officials.24 These frequent rebellion produced agrarian crisis. The Jats of Agra region, the Satnamis, the Sikhs and many more rose in revolt during Aurangzeb's reign because of the Agrarian Crisis.

Aurangzeb followed an aggressive policy towards the Rajputs because Aurangzeb did not want the Rajputs to hinder the Islamisation of India.