Muhammad tuglaq was a mixture of opposites .Analyse the above statement in light of his reforms
Answers
Dark Side of the character of Muhammad Tughlaq:
(1) Muhammad was very selfish and felt no hesitation in killing his father through conspiracy.
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(2) He was a visionary and he wanted to conquer the whole world.
(3) He was over-ambitious. He desired to found a new religion.
(4) He was a poor plan executor. His plan of token currency emptied the state treasury. His plan of increasing state revenue through increase in taxation brought ruin to the farmers. His project of change of capital from Delhi to Daultabad brought immense hardship to the people and did not materialize. He collected a huge army for making conquests in Central Asia, paid the soldiers one year’s salary in advance but afterwards gave up the plan. His plan to conquer Quarajal brought disaster to the army.
(5) He was a coward ruler. He bought peace by bribing the Mongols.
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(6) He was blood-thirsty. He ordered the killing of hundreds of people even on minor matters.
(7) He was short-tempered. He flew into rage wherever his views were opposed.
(8) He was very stubborn and vindictive. He adopted stringent measures on the people of Doab when they refused to pay the taxes.
A complex personality:
Historians have used various epithets while estimating Muhammad Tughlaq. Barani and Ibn-Batuta, his contemporaries found him a ‘complex person’, a ‘mixture of opposites.’ He had virtues and vices of extreme intensity. While he was generous, humble and kind, he was very narrow- minded, stubborn and most cruel. He gave gifts to all those whom he liked, he put to death who opposed him.
Dr. Ishwari Prasad, Dr. V.A. Smith and Dr. K.A. Nizami do not accept the view that Muhammad Tughlaq was a mixture of opposites. They are inclined to hold the view that contemporary historians of Mughammad Tughlaq have put things in an exaggerated manner.