Today In Indian History (20th March)

1351 - Death of Muḥammad bin Tughluq on 20th March in 1351. Muhammad bin Tughluq was the second ruler of the  Tughluq dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. He was the son of Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq, the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty. He ascended the throne after killing his father. Born Jauna Khan aka Ulugh Khan, Muhammad bin Tughluq died 20th March in 1351 while fighting against the rebels in Thatta in Sindh. 

Muhammad bin Tughluq was among the most remarkable, enigmatic and controversial figures among the Sultans of Delhi. To his contemporaries, he was a mixture of cruelty and kindness.   

1602 - Dutch East India Company was established on 20 March 1602 to facilitate trade between the Netherlands and the rest of the world. Chinsurah (now Chuchura) in Hooghly district in West Bengal was a famous Dutch settlement. 

A View of Chinsurah  | Wikimedia Commons

1782 - 20th March marks the anniversary of the birth of the Oriental Scholar, Lieutenant-Colonel James Tod (20 March 1782 – 18 November 1835). He was an author and researcher of Rajput history.

 His magnum opus is Annals and Antiquities of Rajast’han’ (1829).