Politics of Religion in the Sovereign City Delhi Under the Khaljīs (690-720/1290-1320)

Abstract

In the fourteenth century, the political relations in the sovereign city of Delhi were patrimonial and were governed through the patron client matrix. The sultan was a patron for the social and political base of the Delhi Sultanate that he actively created and modified in order to win greater political support. The Khaljī sultans were not as religious as their predecessor slave dynasty or successor Tughluq dynasty. The religious groups under Sufis and ʿulamāʾ became more powerful in Delhi and the popular politics they initiated was unprecedented. Present article delves into the politics of religion and explains how the religious elite was able to gather as much support on the streets during the Khaljī era.