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No. 29.] DOHAD STONE INSC. OF MAHAMUDA (BEGARHA): V. S. 1545, SAKA 1410. 219
Verse 26 seems to give us a totally new information. None of the Muslim historians attributes the construction of or repairs to a fort at Dadhipadra (Dohad) to Mahmud or to any of his friends whose deeds are described at length by the author of the Mirat-i-Sikandari.1
The inscription, it will be found, records all the important conquests of Mahmud till about A.D. 1490, the date of the record, but omits Mahmud's expeditions to Sind and Jagat (Dwarka) in A.D. 1472 and 1473 respectively."
The inscription, in lines 11, 13, 15-17, 20 and 21, refers to the deeds of a person designated as (1) Imādala, (2) Imādala Malika, (3) "Vira " Imādala, (4) Imādala Mulaka and (5) Imädala Malika respectively.
The context in which the first is mentioned is not clear. He seems to have been entrusted with the protection of a country', probably the newly acquired country of Champaner. The second, Malika Imadala, conquered Pallīdēsa and built a fort there. The third built a fort at Champakapura; whereas Imadala Mulaka, the fourth, made a gift (in connexion with the fort at Dadhipadra). The last, Malika Imädala, repaired the same (?) fort in his possession (malikim?).
From the context it appears that all these deeds were performed by one and the same person, namely, Imadala Mulaka, which are described chronologically in the inscription-from the time of his appointment to protect a country' to his repairing a fort at Dadhipadra in Saka 1410.
This Imadala Mulaka may be identified with Imad-ul-Mulk, which was a designation for the post resembling premiership. During Mahmud's regime there were three such 'Imäd-ulMulks': (1) Imad-ul-Mulk Sha'ban, (2) Imäd-ul-Mulk Haji Sultāni, and (3) his son Buda. It was the first who helped Mahmud to fight the conspiracy at the time of his accession to the throne; while Buda must be the person who assisted Mahmud in his conquest of Champaner, etc., and who built and repaired the fort of Dadhipadra (Dohad), because his father, Haji Sultāni had died just before the invasion of Champaner.
The inscription refers to the following places: Ahammadapura, Champaka (padra), Champakapura, Dadhipadra; (the lords of) Gurjara, Mälavaka, Damana and Bāgüla; the forts of Pävaka and Jirna (?); and the mountain Raivataka.
The context in which Ahammadapura is mentioned is not clear, nevertheless it probably refers to the city of Ahmadabad, founded by Ahmad Shah on the site of the old city of Asawal, and not to Ahmadnagar, (also built by him"), because Mahmud is not credited with the construction of any building at Ahmadnagar, while at the former city he erected a number of splendid edifices and surrounded it with a wall and bastions just after the conquest of Champaner.
Champaka(padra) or Champakapura is the modern Champaner, the ancient splendour of which is vividly described by historians. 10 There are still some ruins of the buildings constructed
1 See Faridi, op. cit., pp. 78-88; Bayley, op. cit., pp. 238 ff. This historian, however, mentions one ' Imäd-ulMulk Malik 'Ain who built 'Ain parah, "one of the most beautiful of the suburbs of Ahmadābād ". But as Dadhipadra is to be definitely identified with Dohad this information does not help us much.
C. H. I., Vol. III, pp. 306-07.
According to the kind suggestion of my friend, Mr. Gyani, of the Prince of Wales Museum, Bombay. See C. H. I., Vol. III, pp. 304 and 309.
See C. H. I., Vol. III, p. 309.
• Ibid., p. 300.
Bird, op. cit., p. 190.
C. H. I., Vol. III, p. 612.
Cf. Briggs, op. cit., Vol. IV, p. 70, "at this period".
10 Abul Fazl, Ain-i-Akbari, Vol. II, pp. 241 and 242.