Previous Year Question

What was the immediate reason for Ahmad Shah Abdali to invade India and fight the Third Battle of Panipat ?

He wanted to avenge the expulsion by Marathas of his viceroy Timur Shah from Lahore

The frustrated governor of Jullundhar Adina Beg Khan invited him to invade Punjab

He wanted to punish Mughal administration for non-payment of the revenues of the Chahar Mahal (Gujarat, Aurangabad, Sialkot and Pasrur)

He wanted to annex all the fertile plains of Punjab up to the borders of Delhi to his kingdom

Correct Answer: A

Detailed Solution

Option (a) is correct. In 1757, Ahmad Shah Abdali appointed his son Timur Shah as his viceroy at Lahore. The Afghan general Jahan Khan was placed alongside him to assist in the administration.

The situation changed in 1758. The Maratha forces led by Raghunath Rao and Malhar Rao Holkar were joined by Adina Beg Khan and the Sikhs. The Marathas occupied Lahore, expelled the Afghans from Punjab and Timur Shah fled. The Marathas pursued him up to the river Chenab.

The expulsion of Timur Shah from Lahore was a direct challenge to Ahmad Shah Abdali. Subsequently, Abdali returned with a strong army in 1759, re-established his control over Punjab, and the conflict eventually culminated in the Third Battle of Panipat on 14 January 1761. Thus, the immediate reason asked in the question is given in option (a).

Option (b) is incorrect because in this phase Adina Beg Khan had taken the assistance of the Marathas to drive out the Afghans. Options (c) and (d) do not describe the specific immediate event that triggered Abdali's campaign against the Marathas.

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