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U.P. Lower Sub. Prelims 2002

Early Islamic Contact with India

Authentic Past Paper Standard Evaluation

First Muslim invader in India was-

Solution & Analysis

Answer: C

Concept The arrival of Islam in the Indian subcontinent began not with the Turks but with an Arab expedition from the Umayyad Caliphate in the early 8th century.

Explanation In 711-712 CE, Muhammad bin Qasim, an Arab general, invaded and conquered the region of Sindh (modern Pakistan) after defeating Raja Dahir. This was the first successful Muslim invasion of India.

Logical Breakup
Logic 1: Option C is correct. Qasim's conquest established the first Islamic administrative province in the subcontinent.
Logic 2: Mahmud of Ghazni (B) and Muhammad Ghori (D) invaded centuries later in the 11th and 12th centuries, respectively. Aybak (A) was Ghori's general who founded the Sultanate.

Active Recall

Question

What was the primary reason for the invasion of Sindh?

Answer

The invasion was triggered by the plundering of Arab trade ships by pirates near the coast of Debal (Sindh), which Raja Dahir refused to compensate for.

Core Insight

The Arab conquest of Sindh provided a cultural gateway for Indian mathematical and scientific knowledge to reach the Islamic world.

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