December 7th, 1655
Mughal Empire, Capital City Agra
The Royal Palace of His Majesty Muhammad V, the Emperor of the Mughal Empire and the Sultan of the Mughal dynasty.
In the palace decorated with intricate Arabic designs, a court session was being held. However, this session was very unusual, as the atmosphere in the meeting was very tense.
Even though everyone who attended was either from a noble family or a high-ranking minister, without missing a beat, every single one of them, no matter how aloof and mighty they were In front of their subjects and colleagues, presently in the presence of His Majesty, remained silent as they sat in their seats like good students, not daring to utter a word.
This tense atmosphere was because, just a few hours ago, they received news about the fall of Indore, a major city in the region of Madhya Pradesh, and the absolute destruction of the central army, which had been stationed on the border between the regions of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, specifically between the cities of Gwalior and Sagar.
This army was meant as an emergency force in case the Bhartiya Empire used distraction tactics again by fooling them with a feint and attacking some other place unexpectedly.
However, they had never expected that such an army composed of 50,000 troops would be absolutely annihilated even before they reached the city of Indore. It was only now, that most of the nobles in the Mughal Empire began to feel the threat of extinction from the Dakshin Bharatiya Empire.
They felt scared; they couldn’t even imagine the thought of losing the power they had held for so many generations and returning to the deserts their ancestors came from. However, unfortunately, it looked like that was the situation they were currently facing, and all of these nobles who came to this realization had pale faces and cold sweat on their brows.
In this tense atmosphere, the ministers responsible for helping His Majesty manage the empire were shivering where they stood, not daring to move an inch. Even after receiving such big news, His Majesty did not react; his face remained calm, but his eyes were terrifyingly cold.
They would have been happier if His Majesty had taken out his anger on someone instead of continuing to bear this oppressive atmosphere.
Fortunately, this atmosphere was finally broken by His Majesty the Emperor himself. However, unfortunately, the events that occurred next left the administrative ministers very scared.
Mohammed, who had been silent all this time, suddenly spoke out, "Iqbal, I need you to recruit more troops immediately."
The words that left His Majesty’s mouth made everyone taken aback, because, the empire was already stretched thin in recruiting troops due to the constant deaths in the war and the ongoing loss of many territories. The Mughal Empire could no longer splurge as it did before, and even the people were no longer fooled by empty promises of rich rewards.
It had already become well known that joining the Mughal army was equivalent to getting on a deathbed and signing a death warrant.
Iqbal, who heard the order, was taken aback, but he did not comment on His Majesty’s will and immediately replied, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will get it don—"
However, before he could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by the Prime Minister of the empire, Muhammad Muizzu.
"Just a minute, Your Excellency the Minister of War."
This caught everyone off guard. They did not know why His Excellency the Prime Minister suddenly butted into the conversation between His Majesty and the Minister of War. However, the administrative nobles, who felt they could not stand still, immediately felt like they had a voice and looked at Muhammad Muizzu with some expectation.
Muizzu also understood the meaning behind his colleagues’ reactions and continued, "I am sorry for interrupting your words, Your Excellency. Disrespecting you was not my intention, please believe me." Muizzu first apologized to Iqbal, recognizing that the Minister of War was indeed angry after being interrupted.
However, he had no other choice but to interject, as he felt that things were getting out of control.
Iqbal, Who received the apology, let out a cold snort and sat down.
Muizzu was relieved by the relatively non-volatile reaction from the Minister of War, but he was immediately pierced by the cold eyes of His Majesty the Emperor, which increased the pressure on him manyfold.
Although Muizzu panicked under that gaze, thinking about the harm His Majesty’s decision would cause to the empire, he still mustered the courage to speak his mind.
"Your Majesty and esteemed nobles of the court, please, I urge you to reconsider the decision. The empire’s economy is almost in shambles because of the war, and with the constant loss of multiple territories, many of our streams of income have drastically reduced, especially the region of Gujarat, which was one of the empire’s main sources of wealth."
Muizzu’s eyes were pleading as he continued, "Currently, we only have one major economic region with a coast, and that is Bengal. If, by chance, this recruitment of soldiers triggers a domino effect by not being able to compensate these newly recruited soldiers, the empire’s finances will go bankrupt, and we will have no strength to suppress the ensuing riots."
These words greatly shocked everyone. Although the nobles present in the court did not fully understand the intricacies of the economy, they grasped the simple truth that if the army was not well-fed, riots would not be a rare occurrence; on the contrary, they are all too common.
Hence, everyone looked at His Majesty with worried expressions, waiting for his decision.
However, unfortunately, Emperor Mohammed gave the same blank stare, his emotions not fluctuating even a little bit. But the next words he said greatly stimulated the nobles sitting in the court.
"I will leave the procurement of volunteers for the army to the nobles. Use any means necessary."
These words were like a shockwave passing through the royal court. The nobles, unable to suppress their violent emotions, stood up one by one after hearing this order, greatly stimulated. After His Majesty took the throne, their powers were stripped away as they could no longer train their own armies or govern their regions without the royal family’s involvement.
Now, as they heard His Majesty’s words, they understood the undertone of his order. It was nothing but His Majesty covertly allowing them to recruit troops by themselves. With this sudden pie in the sky, how could they not be surprised and happy?
However, unfortunately, their joy was short-lived as His Majesty continued:
"But, the training of these volunteers will be handed over to the Minister of War, Iqbal, and these volunteers will also follow the command of the empire’s military."
These words greatly calmed them down, as His Majesty still held significant control over the military.
Despite the Emperor’s decision not to grant them full autonomy, they nonetheless agreed with His Majesty’s decision, with smiles on their faces. Before His Majesty brought up this matter, they did not even have an ounce of influence on the military, so anything they gained from that point onwards was a profit, and the interests were still worth exchanging.
In a court where most people were happy, Muizzu and the administrative nobles were the ones who were unhappy. With the splitting of some of the royal power to these nobles, their power was also reduced. They acted as the shareholders of the emperor’s power, and now that the power was being divided, each of them would have fewer dividends than before, which was unacceptable for most of them.
There were also some people like Muizzu who considered more than their own interests. Muizzu understood that if His Majesty’s policy were implemented, it would momentarily strengthen the empire’s military might against the Dakshin Bharatiya Empire and bolster the involvement of multiple nobles in the military, thereby reinforcing it.
Additionally, the financial problems would also be alleviated with the addition of these noble families who had accumulated considerable wealth throughout the ages. However, despite the benefits that this decision of His Majesty would bring to the empire, the drawbacks of this policy were still not worth it.
In the long term, after the disappearance of the Dakshin Bharatiya Empire, the empire might split apart with multiple voices in the military and multiple families fighting for interests.
Hence, Muizzu absolutely resisted this policy and made his voice clear.
The administrative nobles, who were also from his faction, stood with him on this point.
"Your Majesty, please recon—"
However, unfortunately, before he could finish his sentence,
"Enough," Mohammed stated with a stern voice.
"Take him away," he ordered, his hand gesturing with a flick, His eyes ruthless and emotionless as ever.
The whole court was taken aback by the decision of His Majesty. Even though they felt that what His Excellency the Prime Minister did was indeed out of line, the Prime Minister had also made contributions to the empire in the past. So, was it okay to brashly remove him from his post?
"No, Your Majesty, you cannot do this..."
"Please, please, I have worked a lot for the empire. What you are doing is a mistake, Your Majesty, please reconsider."
"Please think about the long-term development of the empire."
"Your Majesty..."
"... "
Muizzu kept screaming at the top of his lungs, but unfortunately, Mohammed’s face remained unmoved.
The soldiers who were dragging Muizzu out did not stop; on the contrary, Muizzu’s voice became quieter and quieter as he went further away from the court.
The administrative nobles looked at each other, and they could see each other’s pale faces. It was as if they could foresee the downfall of the empire with this very decision.
However, no one was there to support them anymore, So the voice of reason died down in the court of the Mughal Empire. Both the regional nobles and the Minister of War, Iqbal, who benefited from His Majesty’s decision, did not stand up for Muizzu, who advocated against their benefits.
Although the nobles had previously supported Muizzu, a fellow noble of the Mughal Empire, and would have defended him even today, his fate took an unfortunate turn. The only factor preventing the nobles from standing up for Muizzu was the lucrative benefits promised by His Majesty the Emperor.
This inducement led them to abandon the idea of speaking on his behalf, despite some nobles agreeing with Muizzu’s reasoning.
With that single benefit promised by His Majesty the Emperor, Muizzu and the regional nobles instantly became members of two opposing factions.
With the opposition of Muizzu removed from the court, the regional nobles and Minister of War Iqbal decided upon the details, and the court session ended with the removal of Mohammed Muizzu, the Prime Minister of the Mughal Empire, who had served for a short span of two years.
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Unknown to anyone in the court, with this one decision by Muhammad V, the Mughal Empire quickly reached the peak of its power, surpassing even its previous territorial extent and becoming the largest army power in the world momentarily. However, this newfound strength soon became its weakness, leading to its eventual disintegration.