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Dear Readers, 

                   I came across an interesting article in today's newspaper supplement of Dainik Bhaskar. It carried the story of Babur's( the first Mughal Emperor) death. What enticed me the most was an account of how the Mughals took possession of the world famous Koh-i-Noor diamond before it fell into the hands of Persian invader Nadir Shah in AD 1739.

                        It so happened that on the eve of Babur's invasion of India, Raja Vikramaditya was ruling over Gwalior. This Rajput ruler had amassed a lot of wealth which included the prized diamond. After the first battle of  Panipat, Mughal forces under Humayun succeeded in defeating Vikramaditya who was killed and his family, consisting of his wife, son and two daughters, was put under house arrest. 

                        Bais Beg, a Mughal commander, was in charge of security of the vanquished. Overpowered by lust, he made an advance at one of the beautiful princesses in response to which he was slain by her brother. A characteristically benevolent Humayun upheld this act of chivalry and ensured the further safety and honor of the Rajputs by meting out adequate punishment to the complicit others. Such a magnanimous gesture was acknowledged with full elegance by gifting the Mughal prince that jewel of jewels. The article did not mention the source of this information. 

                             Again, we see that throughout the medieval times, there were many cases when religion was relegated to the background in face of preserving honor and grace.