The Sultanate of Delhi was defined as the five Muslim kingdoms of the origin of Pashtun and Turkic that ruled the Delhi territory from 1206 to 1526 CE and after the in 16th-century the Mughal empire was established in India. The administration of the Delhi Sultanate was generated on Islamic law or the Shariat. The administration consisted of many officers who made it easy for Sultan to rule over the empire.
The Sultanate of Delhi began in 1206 CE and its administration was built depending on the Shariat. The Sultanate thought that the Sultan was the agent of the Caliph and this was also encrypted in the Sultanate's coins. The Administration was divided into different categories that are; central, provisional, local, judicial, military and revenue. Those administrations had various departments and each department had a specific role with many designated officials.
Sultan was the chief of the administration of the Delhi Sultanate and he was a powerful individual and his wish was the land's law. Sultans could name their successor on deathbeds and the nobles had to accept that. Sultans were seen as the representative of Allah and were responsible for thy implementation of The Holy Quran's rule.
Quranic injunctions directed the Delhi Sultanate’s administration and Sultan was the head of the whole system. There were different departments in the Delhi Sultanates’ central administration that were
Diwan-i-Risalat − The department of appeal was familiar as the Diwan-i-Risalat. This department dealt with foreign affairs and also managed diplomatic correspondence.
Diwan-i-arz − The chief of the Diwan-i-arz was Ariz-i-mumalik and he managed the military administration.
Diwan-i-Ishtiaq − Diwan-i-Ishtiaq was the pension department of the Delhi Sultanate and they were taken care of the pension-related affairs.
Diwan-i-Mustakhraj − Arrears department was known as Diwan-i-Mustakhraj. They collect and look over the revenue of the Sultanates.
Diwan-i-kohi − The agricultural department was recognised as Diwan-i-Kohi. This department managed the activities of any kind of agriculture-related activities throughout the kingdom. This department was first established by Muhammad Bin Tughlaq.
Diwan-i-Insha − The correspondence department, Diwan-i-Insha control any kind of royal correspondence. They also set the regulation based on the law that was formed by the Sultan.
Diwan-i-Bandagan − The slave department, Diwan-i-Bandagan controlled the affairs that are related to the slaves.
Diwan-i-Qaza − The justice department was noted as Diwan-i-Qaza. They handled justice throughout the Sultanate.
Diwan-i-Khairat − Diwan-i-Khairat was the department of charity that administrated the charity in the empire.
There were different officials for the various department and they had specific roles to fulfil. These officials were divided into three levels that were,
Wazir − Wazir was in a very powerful position. He was the prime minister and managed the finances and revenue.
Ariz-i-Mumalik − The head of the military department was Ariz-i-Mumalik. His main role was to recruit soldiers, supervise royal cognizant and take care of the fitness and discipline of the army.
Qazi − Qazi was the chief of the department of judicial.
Wakil-i-dar − Wakil-i-dar controlled the affairs of the royal household.
Barid-i-Mumalik − The head of the news agency of the state was Barid-i-Mumalik.
Amir-i-majlis − Amir-i-majlis arranged the feasts and the festivals of the royal family.
Majlis-i-Am − Majlis-i-Am was the council of the officer and friends. They consulted about important state affairs.
Dahir-i-Mumalik − Head of the royal correspondence was recognised as Dahir-i-mumalik.
Naib wazir − deputy minister was familiar as Naib wazir.
Mushrif-i-Mumalik − The accountants are known as Mushrif-i-Mumalik.
Amir-i-Hazib − The court of royals was managed by the Amir-i-Hazib
Sadr-us-Sudur − Sadr-us-Sudur was the minister of the religion department. He made certain that the Islamic norms were followed strictly.
Sadr-i-Jahan − Any kind of endowments and matters that were related to religion, was managed by Sadr-i-Jahan
Amir-i-Dad − Amir-i-Dad was the public prosecutor.
Shahna-i-Pil − The royal elephants were managed by Shahna-i-Pil.
Amir-i-Bahr − The transport naval port and police were controlled by Amir-i-Bahr.
Qazi-i-Mumalik − Chief justice of the Sultanate was Qazi-i-Mumalik.
Qazi-ul-Kazat − The prime of the chief department of judicial was Qazi-ul-Kazat.
Amir-i-Akhur − Amir-i-Akhur was the officer who commanded the royal horses.
Figure 1: Officers in Province Level
Amir − The governor of the Pargana of the Delhi Sultanates was known as Amir.
Wali or Mukti − The Wali or Mukti was responsible for managing the order and law of Iqtas and collecting taxes.
Wakuf or Nazir − Nazir were responsible for accumulating the revenue of their province.
Sahib-i-diwan − The accounts of the provinces were maintained by the Sahib-i-diwan and sent to the administration of the central.
Shiqdar − The head of the Shiq was Shiqdar and they measured the land of their Shiq.
Amil − Amil was the officer of the revenue of their state.
Barid − The intelligence agents were recognised as Barid.
Khwaja − The officer of the accounts of the state was familiar with Khwaja.
Kotwal − The law and order of a city were managed by Kotwal.
Muhatasib − The chief of the municipality order and law was Muhatasib.
Muftis − Mufftis were the law expounder.
The Sultan had military, political and judicial power therefore military power was important to determine the successor of the throne. Every work of the kingdom could not be done by Sultan, therefore to make it easy he appointed officials to work on his behalf. The administration of the sultanate time was a mixture of Arabic, Persian and Indian systems. The entire administration was maintained by the officials and the analysis of them help the Sultan to improve the law.
Q1. What were the five dynasties of the Delhi Sultanates?
The five dynasties of the Delhi Sultanates were Slave Dynasty, Khilji Dynasty, Tughlaq Dynasty, Sayyid Dynasty and Lodhi Dynasty. The Delhi Sultanate ended in the dynasty of Lodhi.
Q2. What is the meaning of Caliph?
The Arabic term Caliph Stands for the successor of the prophet Muhammad. The caliphate denotes the Muslim communities’ political leader.
Q3. What were the Parganas?
Shiqs were divided into small parts and those parts were familiar as Parganas. The head of the Parganas was Amil. Those Parganas were a combined number of villages
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