Rare coin of the fifth son of Mughal emperor Aurangazeb goes under the hammer, fetches Rs 56 lakh
Bengaluru, Feb 27: A rare 10.9 gram gold coin of Kam Bakhsh, the fifth son of Mughal emperor Aurangazeb, went under the hammer here, fetching Rs 56 lakh.
Marudhar Arts, a leading numismatic auction house here, held the auction at a price ranging between Rs 45 lakh and Rs 50 lakh, but it was sold for Rs 56 lakh.
Rajendra Maru, the CEO of Marudhar Arts, told PTI the gold 'Mohur' of Bijapur Dar-uz-Zafar mint has a Persian legend and brought in Rs 56 lakh.
He, however, did not disclose the name of the buyer.
"The coin, weighing 10.90 gram, is almost uncirculated. So it's unique," Maru, who is organising the auction, said.
According to a statement on Marudhar Arts' portal, Kam Bakhsh took active part in the wars.
In 1707, he seized the control of the Bijapur fort and declared himself the king.
Gradually, Kam Bakhsh sway extended across much of Deccan winning control over Hyderabad, erstwhile Gulbarga (now Kalaburagi), Shahpur and Wakinkhera.
His inefficiency in handling administration led to the collapse of his kingdom, they said.
The older son of Aurangzeb, Shah Alam Bahadur after taking reins of the Mughal empire took a serious note of Kam Bakhsh striking coins in his name.
In a pitched battle that ensued between the two armies on 13 January 1709, Kam Bakhsh was captured and the next day he died of wounds.
This coin is unusual and important, Marudhar Arts said explaining that coins of Kam Bakhsh are known from a number of mints Bijapur, Ahsanabad, Nusratabad, Haidarabad, Torgal, Gokak, Imtiyazgarh but this combination is not yet recorded for any of these issues.
"We do not know when Kam Bakhsh declared himself the emperor but it must have been sometime in March 1707, soon after the fort of Bijapur came under his control, but we dont know the exact date for this event," the statement said.
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Two held for 'firing' at BJP leader's house in Bengal
Kolkata (PTI): A day before the counting of votes for the West Bengal assembly elections, two persons were arrested on Sunday for allegedly being involved in a firing incident outside the residence of a BJP leader in North 24 Parganas district, police said.
BJP leader Kundan Singh lodged a police complaint, alleging that a few gunmen fired at his house in the Noapara constituency around Saturday midnight.
Based on the CCTV footage, the two accused were apprehended, a senior officer said.
BJP's Noapara candidate Arjun Singh, in a post on social media, claimed that around 12.05 am, two armed miscreants arrived on a motorcycle at the residence of Kundan Singh, a BJP functionary and secretary of the Barrackpore organisational district, with an "intent to kill him".
According to the BJP leader, the accused are residents of Garulia and are known criminals.
Their names as offenders had been submitted to the Election Commission, he said.
The police officer did not specify whether the two arrested persons were the same individuals named by Arjun Singh.
According to the complaint, one round of firing took place outside Kundan Singh's house, triggering panic in the area.
The BJP candidate also questioned the role of the police, claiming that one of the accused had been detained by the police on the polling day but was later released in the evening.
The Noapara assembly seat went to the polls on April 29.
Several BJP leaders alleged that attempts were being made to create an atmosphere of fear ahead of the counting and weaken the organisation of the opposition parties.
The counting of votes will take place on May 4. Polling for the West Bengal assembly elections was held on April 23 and April 29.
The BJP urged the Election Commission to intervene immediately to ensure peaceful counting.
TMC candidate Somnath Shyam rubbished Arjun Singh’s allegation, claiming that the BJP nominee had orchestrated the firing incident to divert attention from imminent defeat.
“Arjun Singh knows all the gangsters in the Barrackpore belt. Everyone knows about his links with the underworld. Let the police investigate the incident,” Shyam said.
