'The cancer of South destructed Aurangzeb'. Discuss the South policy of Aurangzeb in the light of this statement.

Introduction: Eminent historian Sir Jadunath Sarkar famously remarked: "As the Spanish Ulcer ruined Napoleon, so the Deccan Ulcer ruined Aurangzeb." Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb's (1658–1707) obsessive 25-year Deccan military entanglement (1681–1707) bled the Mughal treasury dry, crippled imperial administration, and triggered the terminal collapse of the Mughal Empire.

1. Objectives and Aggressive Course of Aurangzeb's Deccan Policy:

• 1. Strategic Blunder of Annexing Shia Sultanates:
  • Directly invaded and annexed the wealthy Shia kingdoms of Bijapur (Adil Shahi - 1686) and Golconda (Qutb Shahi - 1687).
  • Strategic Disaster: These Shia Sultanates had served as a vital geopolitical buffer against Maratha expansion. Their destruction brought the Mughals into direct, protracted confrontation with the Marathas across an unmanageable frontier.
• 2. Execution of Sambhaji & Rise of Maratha People's War:
  • Aurangzeb captured and brutally executed Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj in 1689 and captured Raigad, believing Maratha power was crushed.
  • Instead, the entire Maratha nation united under Chhatrapati Rajaram, Maharani Tarabai, and brilliant commanders (Santaji Ghorpade, Dhanaji Jadhav), waging relentless guerilla warfare (Ganimi Kava) that trapped the imperial army in an unwinnable quagmire.

2. Destructive Consequences on the Mughal Empire (The "Deccan Cancer"):

• 1. Complete Financial Bankruptcy: Endless siege warfare consumed decades of imperial revenues and exhausted the accumulated treasuries of Shah Jahan and Akbar.
• 2. Administrative Paralysis in North India: Aurangzeb's continuous 25-year personal absence from Delhi led to administrative breakdown, corruption, and widespread revolts by Jats, Sikhs, Satnamis, and Rajputs in the north.
• 3. Demoralization & Jagirdari Crisis: Continuous military attrition decimated elite Mughal mansabdars and cavalry, leading to an acute scarcity of land (Jagirs).

Conclusion: Aurangzeb died in Ahmadnagar in 1707 a broken, exhausted monarch. The Deccan was indeed the fatal cancer that doomed the Mughal Empire to rapid disintegration.