RAS question
Who founded the Delhi Sultanate?
Correct answer: (B) Qutbuddin Aibak.
Qutbuddin Aibak founded the Delhi Sultanate in 1206 CE after the assassination of Muhammad Ghori.
Explanation
Qutbuddin Aibak was a slave and general of Muhammad Ghori. After Ghori's assassination, Aibak founded the Delhi Sultanate in 1206 CE and established the Slave, or Mamluk, dynasty. NCERT places the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate in 1206 and describes it as the beginning of a Sultanate ruled by successive Turkic-Afghan dynasties, starting with the Mamluks. The same NCERT chapter links Aibak's period with the early construction of the Qutub Minar complex. This is why Aibak, not Ghori, Iltutmish, or Razia Sultan, is treated as the founder in standard medieval Indian history.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Razia Sultan was the daughter of Iltutmish and ruled briefly later, so she cannot be the founder of the Sultanate established in 1206.
- (C) Muhammad Ghori's conquests prepared the ground in North India, but he was assassinated before the Delhi Sultanate was established.
- (D) Iltutmish was the real consolidator of the Delhi Sultanate, but the founding act in 1206 is attributed to Qutbuddin Aibak.
Concept
This tests the foundation of the Delhi Sultanate within medieval Indian political history. RAS repeats such questions because founders, dynasties, and consolidation phases are basic chronology anchors for Sultanate-era administration and culture.