Rahmat Banu Begum

Rahmat Banu Begum(Persian: رحمت بانو بیگم‎‎), c. 1662 - ?, born Rajkumari Ramani Gabharu(Assamese: ৰাজকুমাৰী ৰমণী গাভৰু), also known as Nangchen Gabharu, was the first wife of Mughal emperor Muhammad Azam Shah.

She was the only daughter of Swargadeo Jayadhwaj Singha, king of Ahom Dynasty and his wife Pakhori Gabharu, the daughter of Momai Tamuli Borbarua. She was the niece of Lachit Borphukan and Laluksola Borphukan. She famously resisted Laluksola Borphukan's plan to hand over Guwahati to her husband.^[1]

Early life

Rahmat Banu Begum was born as Ahom princess (Rajkumari) and was the only daughter of Swargadeo Jayadhwaj Singha, king of Ahom Dynasty and his wife Pakhori Gabharu. She was the maternal granddaughter of Momai Tamuli Borbarua, was an able administrator and the commander-in-chief of the army in the Ahom kingdom and the niece of Lachit Borphukan and Laluksola Borphukan who are known for their participation in the Battle of Saraighat that thwarted a drawn-out attempt by Mughal forces under the command of Ram Singh I to take back Kamrup.

Marriage

When Mir Jumla invaded Jayadhwaj's kingdom and defeated him in the war, he made a truce with Mir Jumla on a condition for which his daughter Ramani Gabharu had to be sent to the Mughal's imperial harem when she was only six. In course of time she was formally married to Aurangzeb's son Muhammad Azam Shah on Sunday, 3 May 1668, with a dowry of 1,80,000 rupees at Delhi. Ramani Gabharu got the Muslim name of Rahmat Banu Begum.

By the time, Guwahati was recovered from the Mughals by king Chakradhwaj Singha with the help of famous Ahom general Lachit Borphukan in the famous battle of Battle of Saraighat. Lachit Borphukan earned much fame by defeating famous Mughal general Ram Singha in this battle. Had there been no Lachit Bagphukanas the general of the Ahom Army, it would have been utterly impossible on the part of the Ahoms to win the battle. In that case Guwahati would have remained as the part of Mughal Empire as before. Even after being defeated in the hands of Lachit Bagphukanas, Ram Singh I spoke highly of the manifold qualities of the Ahom Soldiers.

Then, after a period of some years, it was proposed that Guwahati should be given to the Mughals and in return Laluksola, the viceroy of Ahoms at Guwahati will be made the king. When Ramani Ghabaru came to know about it, she wrote a letter to her maternal uncle Laluksola Borphukan warning him not to do such an act of betrayal. The power-hungry Laluksola Borphukan did not listen to his noble niece, but her love for her mother-land is still remembered by the people of Assam with great reverence.

Death and legacy

Rahmat Banu Begum died suddenly while at Dhaka and was buried in the Lalbagh. The Assamese remember her and hold her great esteem though she was in Delhi her heart was always yearning for the welfare of the people of her motherland, Assam.

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