Subahdar, also known as Nazim or in English as a "Subah", was one of the designations of a governor of a
Subah
A Subah was the term for a province (State) in the Mughal Empire. The word is derived from Arabic and Persian. The governor/ruler of a ''Subah'' was known as a '' subahdar'' (sometimes also referred to as a "''Subeh''"), which later became ''sub ...
(province) during the
Khalji dynasty of Bengal,
Mamluk dynasty (Delhi)
The Mamluk dynasty ( fa, سلطنت مملوک, Salṭanat Mamlūk) was founded in Northern India by Qutb ud-Din Aibak, a Turkic Mamluk slave-general of the Ghurid Empire from Central Asia. The Mamluk dynasty ruled from 1206 to 1290; it was ...
,
Khalji dynasty
The Khalji or Khilji (Pashto: ; Persian: ) dynasty was a Turco-Afghan dynasty which ruled the Delhi sultanate, covering large parts of the Indian subcontinent for nearly three decades between 1290 and 1320.[Tughlaq dynasty
The Tughlaq dynasty ( fa, ), also referred to as Tughluq or Tughluk dynasty, was a Muslim dynasty of Indo- Turkic origin which ruled over the Delhi sultanate in medieval India. Its reign started in 1320 in Delhi when Ghazi Malik assumed the ...]
,
Mughal era
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the ...
( of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
who was alternately designated as Sahib-i-Subah or Nazim. The word, ''Subahdar'' is of
Persian origin. According to sources, Subahdar Awlia Khan was a famous and trusted Subahdar of the
Khalji dynasty of Bengal (1204-1231) whose title was Saheb-i-Subah could not be ascertained.He belonged to the
Oghuz Turks
The Oghuz or Ghuzz Turks (Middle Turkic: ٱغُز, ''Oγuz'', ota, اوغوز, Oġuz) were a western Turkic people that spoke the Oghuz branch of the Turkic language family. In the 8th century, they formed a tribal confederation conven ...
Kayı (tribe) and his ancestors came to the region during the expansion of The Great
Seljuk Empire
The Great Seljuk Empire, or the Seljuk Empire was a high medieval, culturally Turko-Persian, Sunni Muslim empire, founded and ruled by the Qïnïq branch of Oghuz Turks. It spanned a total area of from Anatolia and the Levant in the west to ...
to establish good governance and justice in
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...
. Subahdar Awlia Khan was a friend of
Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khalji
Ikhtiyār al-Dīn Muḥammad Bakhtiyār Khaljī, (Pashto :اختيار الدين محمد بختيار غلزۍ, fa, اختیارالدین محمد بختیار خلجی, bn, ইখতিয়ারউদ্দীন মুহম্মদ � ...
Later, during the conquest of Bengal, Awlia Khan was his fellow warrior. Today the descendants of the great Subahdar Awlia Khan have been living in Fuldi village of
Gazipur district of
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
for almost 900 years and Mesbahuddin Ahmed Khan Abdu Mia, a descendant of Subahdar Awlia Khan was also the only great
Sunni
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a dis ...
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
Zamindar
A zamindar (Hindustani language, Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian language, Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous Raja, ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughal Em ...
of
Bhawal Estate.
The Subahdar was the head of the Mughal provincial administration. He was assisted by the provincial ''Diwan'', ''Bakshi'', ''Faujdar'', ''Kotwal'', ''Qazi'', ''Sadr'', ''Waqa-i-Navis'', ''Qanungo'' and ''Patwari''. The Subahdars were normally appointed from the Mughal princes or the officers holding the highest
''mansabs'' (ranks).
Nazim
A ''nazim'' (, ur, ; from the Arabic word for "organizer" or "convenor"), similar to a
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
, was the coordinator of cities and towns in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. Nazim is the title in
of the chief elected official of a
local government in Pakistan
Pakistan is a federal republic with three tiers of government: national, provincial and local. Local government is protected by the constitution in Articles 32 and 140-A, and each province also has its own local-government-enabling legislation an ...
, such as a
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivision ...
,
tehsil
A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluka, or taluk) is a local unit of administrative division in some countries of South Asia. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its adminis ...
,
union council, or village council. Likewise, a deputy mayor is known as a ''Naib nazim'' (). The word
naib
Nawab ( Balochi: نواب; ar, نواب;
bn, নবাব/নওয়াব;
hi, नवाब;
Punjabi : ਨਵਾਬ;
Persian,
Punjabi ,
Sindhi,
Urdu: ), also spelled Nawaab, Navaab, Navab, Nowab, Nabob, Nawaabshah, Nawabshah or Noba ...
in Urdu literally means "assistant" or "deputy" hence Naib nazim was similar in function to a deputy mayor. He was also custodian of the house.
Pakistan originally had a system inherited from the time of
British rule, in which a
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
was the head of a
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivision ...
. Under the
Local Government Act, however, the role of the nazim became distinct from that of a
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
, with more power. The nazim system was introduced after the commissionerate system, imposed during British rule, was lifted by the government of Pakistan. This
Local Government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loc ...
act was imposed in the country in 2001. One exception, however, is
Islamabad
Islamabad (; ur, , ) is the capital city of Pakistan. It is the country's ninth-most populous city, with a population of over 1.2 million people, and is federally administered by the Pakistani government as part of the Islamabad Capital ...
, the federal capital, where the commissionerate system remained in effect.
In 2009, the new government restored the commissionerate system. All the provinces introduced their own new local government systems.
A ''Nazim'' was also empowered to decide criminal cases.
The ''Nazim'' was the lowliest of elected officials in Pakistan.
The district nazim, is elected by the nazims of Union Councils, Union Councillors, and Tehsil Nazims, who themselves are elected directly by the votes of the local public.
The name which is used for the president of
Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba
Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba ( ur, ) IJT is the largest student organisation in the world. It was founded by 25 students on 23 December 1947 at Lahore, Pakistan. Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba is working in Pakistan to eliminate the non-Islamic elements an ...
, the Islamic Union of Students in Pakistan, is Nazim-e-ala (). The nazim-e-ala is elected for one year, and after completing that tenure, all the members of IJT who are called (Arkaan) elect a new one.
References
{{Reflist
Government of the Mughal Empire
Medieval India
History of Pakistan
History of India
Local government in Pakistan
Titles in India