Akbar’s experimentation with various religions and his attempts to create a new religious faith called Din Ilahi had invited the wrath of the Mullahs with some attempting to denounce him as an apostate. However, towards the end of his reign there was no longer a whisper of protest against him, even from die-hard Mullahs. Akbar had now acquired the status of a superhuman and most subjects’ knees turned to jelly in his presence. However, Akbar was now consumed with only one worry and that was for his son and heir apparent Salim.
Salim had been waiting impatiently for a long time to rake over the reins of the empire and as the 16th century drew to a close, his impatience turned to despair and frustration. He felt that to have reached the age of 31 and still not be the king was an intolerable affront. It was ironic he felt this way because when he did become the emperor and assumed the title of Jahangir, it was his Empress Noorjahan who virtually ran the empire while Jahangir lay in a stupor of wine and opium.
Though Akbar was 58 years old and had been the emperor for 44 years, he was still in robust health. It appeared that he would reign for many more years and might even outlive Salim, who also was consumed by drink and pleasures.
Salim’s older brother Murad was already dead and the other brother Daniyal was an alcoholic wreck who did not look like he would last very long. Salim himself was in poor health owing to his excesses.
Salim felt that time was running out for him and he could no longer wait for the natural course of events to claim his rights. He had to take charge to claim what he felt was rightfully his inheritance – the reins to the empire of Hindustan.
There has been tension between the father and son for quite a while, and as far back as 1591 Akbar had suspected that Salim might be up to some mischief. That was also the year when Akbar was struck by a mysterious stomach ailment that would not respond to any treatment. According to Badauni, Akbar had suspected he might have been poisoned by Salim. Akbar had mumbled in a semi conscious state, “Baba Shaikhuji”, referring to Salim by his nickname, “since the entire Sultanate will devolve on thee, why hast thou made this attack on me?”
Although, Akbar’s suspicion did not confirm that Salim was guilty it did indicate the uneasy relationship between father and son.
Around this time, Akbar seemed to have shifted his loyalties to his second son Murad, and when he died to the youngest son Daniyal, who had even been authorised to use a red tent, which was a privilege normally reserved for the emperor. The opportunistic amirs had sensed the change in the emperor’s loyalties and flocked to the younger princes which served to further heighten Salim’s anxiety. Salim become more and more perturbed that his father’s neglect of him seemed to increase everyday.
Matters came to a head when Akbar set out towards the Deccan. Before he left Agra he directed Salim to resume the long delayed offensive against Mewar. But Salim had no wish to get bogged down in what he knew would be a long and frustrating campaign, so he just dawdled in Ajmer in sullen discontent.
In 1600 he left Ajmer and proceeded to Agra and made a half-hearted attempt to seize the treasury. When he failed he turned around and headed for Allahabad and avoided a meeting with his grandmother, Hamida Banu Begum, who was very fond of him and was desperately trying to steer him away from his reckless behaviour.
When he reached Allahabad he seized the treasury and set himself up as an independent ruler by appointing officers and distributing fiefs between them. He also began to raise an army. When Akbar was apprised of this shocking news, he reacted in a low-key manner, treating this as a family matter and not as a matter of state.
Salim ultimately succeeded his father as emperor because of the immense support and efforts of the ladies in Akbar’s harem like Ruqaiya Sultan Begum, Salima Sultan Begum and of his grandmother Maryam Makani.