Which of the following is an imperial order?

Answer & explanation

Correct answer: option 1

The correct answer is Option (1) → Farman

Option (1) Farman — Correct. A farman is an imperial order, a formal order issued by the Mughal emperor. For example, Akbar issued a farman in 1598 so that the Jesuit fathers could build a church at Khambat, and he ordered that it be obeyed in every way.

Option (2) Salat — Incorrect. Salat (namaz) means offering prayers five times a day. It is one of the five ‘pillars’ of Islam, a religious duty, not an order of the emperor.

Option (3) Fatwa — Incorrect. A fatwa is a legal ruling or opinion on a point of the shari‘a (the law governing the Muslim community), given by a scholar of Islamic law. It is not an order of the emperor.

Option (4) Hukum — Incorrect. Hukum is a general word for an order or command given by anyone in authority; it is not the name of the emperor’s formal order, which was the farman.

Note: The terms ‘fatwa’ and ‘hukum’ are not in NCERT (2026-27); they are explained here for the benefit of the students.

NCERT (2026-27): “5.2 The popular practice of Islam … The developments that followed the coming of Islam were not confined to ruling elites; in fact they permeated far and wide, through the subcontinent, amongst different social strata – peasants, artisans, warriors, merchants, to name a few. All those who adopted Islam accepted, in principle, the five ‘pillars’ of the faith: that there is one God, Allah, and Prophet Muhammad is his messenger (shahada); offering prayers five times a day (namaz/salat); giving alms (zakat); fasting during the month of Ramzan (sawm); and performing the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj).…”