Mughlani Begum also known as Murad Begum, ruled

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

from

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

for few years in 1753. She was known for playing her friends and foes against each other for her personal gains. She was the wife of

Moin-ul-Mulk Mian-Moin-ul-Mulk also known by his title Mir Mannu (died 1753) was the Mughal and later Durrani governor of the Punjab between 1748 and 1753. Early life Moin-ul-Mulk was the son of Qamar-ud-Din Khan, Grand Vizier of the Mughal Empire, and youn ...

(Mir Mannu), who was Governor of the

Subah of Lahore The Subah of Lahore was a province of the Mughal Empire encompassing the central Punjab region, now divided between Pakistan and India. It was created as one of the original 12 Subahs of the Mughal Empire under the administrative reforms carrie ...

from 1748 to 1753, and who had endeared himself to

Ahmed Shah Abdali Ahmad Shāh Durrānī ( ps, احمد شاه دراني; prs, احمد شاه درانی), also known as Ahmad Shāh Abdālī (), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded as the founder of the modern Afghanistan. In July 1747, Ahma ...

, the

King of Afghanistan This article lists the heads of state of Afghanistan since the foundation of the first modern Afghan state, the Hotak Empire, in 1709. History The Hotak Empire was formed after a successful uprising led by Mirwais Hotak and other Afghan triba ...

Rise to power

In November 1753, Moin-ul-Mulk was killed in a horse accident and his infant son was appointed the Governor of Punjab by the Mughal Emperor

Ahmad Shah Bahadur Ahmad Shah Bahadur , also known as Mirza Ahmad Shah or Mujahid-ud-Din Ahmad Shah Ghazi (23 December 1725 – 1775 AD), was the fourteenth Mughal Emperor, born to Emperor Muhammad Shah. He succeeded his father to the throne in 1748, at the age ...

. Mughlani Begum became regent to the infant Governor and garnered all the powers in her hands. She however neglected the affairs of the state and led an amoral life, having illicit affairs with many men. Incensed by this, the Mughal officers threw her out and appointed Mirza Khan in her place. Mughlani sent her uncle to Abdali requesting for help to get back her power. Abdali dispatched a small army to Lahore, captured Mirza Khan, and restored the powers to Mughlani. But soon after, her son died and she lost her powers again. Mughlani now got into a

power struggle In political science and political history, the term power vacuum, also known as a power void, is an analogy between a physical vacuum to the political condition "when someone in a place of power, has lost control of something and no one has repla ...

with her uncle and lost, because the latter had the backing of Abdali's men. Piqued by this, Mughlani sought the help of Imad-ul-mulk, who was the Mughal Wazir in Delhi, and also engaged to Mughlani's daughter Umda Begum. Imad agreed to help by sending his troops, but backed out when he got wind of Mughlani's many illicit liaisons, for he felt this would be a disgrace to his family. He secretly sent a contingent of soldiers to Lahore, who encircled Mughlani's palace and forcibly took her away to Sirhind. Vowing revenge, Mughlani now started making overtures to Ahmed Shah Abdali, promising him a treasure trove in the ancestral palace of her father-n-law, the late Wazir Qamruddin Khan. There were others who conspired against Imad-ul-mulk and invited Abdali to invade Delhi. Abdali picked up the bait and decided to invade

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

. When the news of the impending invasion reached Imad, he had neither an army nor allies willing to fight for him. In desperation he sought peace and sent Mughlani, most ironically, as his envoy to Abdali to stop the invasion. Mughlani tried to convince Abdali to turn back, but he refused since he was already on the doorstep of Delhi. Mughlani sent a secret note to Imad, asking him to flee to a safe place, if he did not have the stomach to fight Abdali. Imad finally surrendered and was stripped of all his powers and wealth. Abdali systematically plundered the city of Delhi, Mughlani pointing out the wealthy people, for which she was rewarded with titles and land. When Abdali retreated to Afghanistan with his loot, the estates were taken away from Mughlani. She was offered a

pension A pension (, from Latin ''pensiō'', "payment") is a fund into which a sum of money is added during an employee's employment years and from which payments are drawn to support the person's retirement from work in the form of periodic payments ...

, which she haughtily refused and lived in

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...

In popular culture

Indian film director

Surjit Singh Sethi Surjit Singh Sethi (1928-1995) was an Indian playwright, novelist, short story writer and lyricist who wrote in Punjabi. He was also a film maker and theatre personality. Biography Surjit Singh Sethi was born at Gujarkhan, Punjab Province, ...

made ''

Mughlani Begum Mughlani Begum also known as Murad Begum, ruled Punjab from Lahore for few years in 1753. She was known for playing her friends and foes against each other for her personal gains. She was the wife of Moin-ul-Mulk (Mir Mannu), who was Governor of ...

'', a 1979 Punjabi-language film about the Begum and Mir Mannu, starring Preet Kanwal in the titular role.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Begum, Mughlani Date of birth unknown Date of death unknown Punjabi culture Punjabi women 18th-century Indian women politicians 18th-century women rulers