Authentic Past Paper Standard Evaluation
Aurangzeb conquered which Deccan states?
Solution & Analysis
Answer: C
Concept
Aurangzeb’s Deccan policy aimed at total imperial consolidation. He believed that the destruction of the independent Southern Sultanates was necessary to eliminate centers of resistance and Shia influence.Explanation
Aurangzeb personally led the campaigns that resulted in the conquest of Bijapur in 1686 (defeating Sikandar Shah) and Golconda in 1687 (defeating Abul Hasan Qutb Shah). These were the two last major independent sultanates of the Deccan.Logical Breakup
Logic 1: Ahmadnagar had been annexed earlier under Shah Jahan, so it was not a conquest unique to Aurangzeb's late-reign campaign.
Logic 2: While successful on paper, these conquests were 'political blunders' because they brought the Mughals into direct, non-stop contact with the Marathas without a buffer state.