Sindh under the Mughals: Some Glimpses from Tarikh-i-Masumi and Mazhar-iShahjahani

Abstract

The Mughal period (1592-1737 CE) rightly claims to produce an abundant amount of literature on history and culture of Sindh. This article aims to highlight impacts of Mughal rule on politics, administration and society of Sindh. There were a number of official writers emerged, who endeavored for drawing a plausibly adequate picture of the Mughal administration. Their narrations have been qualified by the quality and expanse of available information. Studies of the Mughal administration in Sindh are, for the most part, relied upon notable works significantly include some indigenous historical sources. This article fundamentally based upon the two such masterpieces titled Tarikh-i-Sindh alias Tarikh-i-Masumi (c. 1593 CE) and the Mazhar-iShahjahani (c. 1634 CE). Both of these compilations offer an overview of the dynamics of the Mughal politics concerning different administrative units and offices. Besides the political history, some new aspects in terms of socioeconomic conditions are also evident on the basis of the first hand record. I anticipate that this endeavor would reveal some extent the true perception about the politics and society in Sindh under the Mughals.