NCERT Textbook Controversy: The basis for calling Babur ‘cruel and ruthless’
Babur's last letter: A historical document of religious tolerance
Sulh-e-Kul: A tradition from Babur to Akbar
War, power, and religion: The reality of medieval rulers
Shivaji, Akbar, and a shared political culture
Historiography versus ideological simplification
Was Babur really a religious bigot? An analysis of NCERT’s claim in light of Babur’s 1529 letter, Sulh-e-Kul, and historical context by Justice Katju.
Was Babur a bigot ?
In the Indian NCERT ( National Council of Educational Research and Training ) new social science class 8 textbook of 2025, Moghul Emperor Babur, the founder of the Moghul dynasty ( 1483-1530 ), has been described as 'brutal and ruthless'
But is that true ?
Babur's letter to his son Humayun ( who would become the next Moghul Emperor ), written on his death bed in 1529, states :
“Oh, my son!
The realm of Hindustan is full of diverse creeds. Praise be to God, the Righteous, the Glorious, the Highest, that He has granted unto you its Empire.
It is but proper that you, with a heart cleansed of all religious bigotry, should dispense justice according to the tenets of each community.
And in particular refrain from the sacrifice of cow, for that way lies the conquest of the hearts of the people of Hindustan; and the subjects of the realm will, through your royal favor, be devoted to you.
And the temples and abodes of worship of every community under Imperial sway, you should not damage.
Dispense justice so that the Sovereign may be happy with the subjects, and likewise the subjects with their Sovereign.
And bring together the subjects with different beliefs in the manner of the Four Elements, so that the body politic may be immune from the various ailments. And remember the deeds of Hazrat Taimur Sahib, your great ancestor, so that you may become mature in matters of Government.
On us is but the duty to advise.”
(Source: Simon Sebag Montefiore, Written in History: Letters That Changed the World, London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 2018, pp. 208-209.)
No doubt Babur was a warrior, and in wars some cruelty is committed.
But so far as religion is concerned, the above letter shows that far from being a bigot, as some portray him to be, he followed the doctrine of Suleh-e-Kul or giving respect to all religions, which his grandson, the great Emperor Akbar, proclaimed and practised, and which policy was also followed by the great Maratha king Chatrapati Shivaji.
(Justice Markandey Katju is a former Judge of the Supreme Court of India, and former Chairman of the Press Council of India. The views expressed are his own.)
