RAS question
Ibrahim Lodi was defeated in the First Battle of Panipat (1526) by:
Correct answer: (C) Babur.
Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the Delhi Sultan, at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526 and became the first Mughal emperor.
Explanation
The answer is Babur because the First Battle of Panipat, fought on 21 April 1526, ended with Ibrahim Lodi's defeat and death. Babur used gunpowder firearms and the Tulughma, or flanking, tactic, which made the battle a turning point rather than just another dynastic contest. NCERT, Themes in Indian History Part II gives the core sequence: Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi, the Delhi Sultan, at Panipat in 1526 and became the first Mughal emperor. That result also explains the larger political consequence: the Delhi Sultanate ended and Mughal rule began.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Humayun was Babur's son, so he belongs to the generation after the victor of Panipat in 1526.
- (B) Sher Shah Suri defeated Humayun, not Ibrahim Lodi, so he is tied to a later Mughal-Afghan contest.
- (D) Akbar is associated with the Second Battle of Panipat in 1556, not the First Battle of Panipat in 1526.
Concept
This tests the foundation chronology of medieval Indian history: the fall of the Delhi Sultanate and the beginning of Mughal rule. It recurs in RAS because battles such as Panipat anchor dynasty change, military methods and political consequences in one fact pattern.