The Delhi Sultanate’s institutional core lay in its iqta system and standing army rather than in Persianate court culture. Examine with reference to the Khalji and Tughlaq experiments.

Introduction: The Delhi Sultanate (1206–1526) survived five dynasties largely because of two structural pillars — the iqta as a revenue assignment and a centrally paid standing army — perfected by Alauddin Khalji and reworked by Muhammad bin Tughlaq.

Body — three dimensions: (1) Iqta reformed: Iltutmish introduced iqta, Balban consolidated, Alauddin Khalji (r. 1296–1316) shifted to direct cash payment, fixed price control in Delhi markets (shahna-i-mandi), measurement-based land revenue (kharaj) at 50 per cent. (2) Standing army: Alauddin's dagh (branding of horses) and chehra (descriptive roll) curbed corruption; permanent army of about 4.75 lakh paid in cash defended against Mongol invasions of 1297–1303. (3) Tughlaq experiments: Muhammad bin Tughlaq (1325–51) shifted capital from Delhi to Daulatabad, issued token currency in copper, raised taxation in the Doab — administrative ambition outran capacity. (4) Court culture supplemented but did not substitute these structures; Amir Khusrau wrote at Khalji and Tughlaq courts but Persianate culture without iqta and army would not have held the polity.

Conclusion: Satish Chandra reads the Sultanate as a war state administered through fiscal-military innovation; the Lodi decline (1451–1526) shows what happens when these structures weaken.