Malik Kafur also known as "Hazar Dinar" was bought by whom?

Question

Malik Kafur also known as "Hazar Dinar" was bought by whom?

1. A. Alauddin Khilji
2. B. Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq
3. C. Nusrat Khan (Correct answer)
4. D. More than one of the above

Correct Answer

Option C — Nusrat Khan

Detailed Solution & Explanation

The correct answer is Nusrat Khan.

Key Points

• Malik Kafur, later a powerful general of Alauddin Khilji, was originally a slave who was purchased by Nusrat Khan for about one thousand dinars during the conquest of Gujarat (1299) — which is why he came to be known as 'Hazar Dinari' (the thousand-dinar slave).
• Nusrat Khan then presented him to Sultan Alauddin Khilji.
• Malik Kafur rose to become Alauddin's most trusted commander and led the famous military campaigns into the Deccan and South India (against Devagiri, Warangal, Dwarasamudra and Madurai).
• Since the question asks who bought him, the correct answer is Nusrat Khan, option (C) — Alauddin Khilji was his later master, not his purchaser.

Additional Information

• Malik Kafur was purchased by Nusrat Khan during the Gujarat campaign of 1299, reportedly for a thousand dinars — hence the epithet Hazar Dinari.
• He rose to command Alauddin Khilji's southern expeditions (1308-1311) against the Yadavas, Kakatiyas, Hoysalas and Pandyas, extending Delhi's reach to Madurai.
• After Alauddin's death in 1316 he briefly seized power as kingmaker before being killed by the Sultan's own guards.