Consider the following statements : 1. It was during the reign of I

Consider the following statements :

  • 1. It was during the reign of Iltutmish that Chenghiz Khan reached the Indus in pursuit of the fugitive Khwarezm prince.
  • 2. It was during the reign of Muhammad bin Tughluq that Taimur occupied Multan and crossed the Indus.
  • 3. It was during the reign of Deva Raya II of Vijayanagara Empire that Vasco da Gama reached the coast of Kerala.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1 only
1 and 2
3 only
2 and 3
This question was previously asked in
UPSC IAS – 2021
Only statement 1 is correct.
Statement 1 is correct: Chenghiz Khan did reach the banks of the Indus River in 1221 AD while pursuing the Khwarezmian prince Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu. This event occurred during the reign of Iltutmish (1211-1236 AD) in the Delhi Sultanate.
Statement 2 is incorrect: Timur invaded India and sacked Delhi in 1398 AD. At that time, the ruler of the Delhi Sultanate was Nasir-ud-Din Mahmud Shah Tughluq (1394-1413 AD), the last ruler of the Tughluq dynasty, not Muhammad bin Tughluq (1324-1351 AD).
Statement 3 is incorrect: Vasco da Gama reached Calicut, on the coast of Kerala, in 1498 AD. Deva Raya II reigned the Vijayanagara Empire from 1422 to 1446 AD. The ruler of Vijayanagara around 1498 AD was Immadi Narasimha Nayaka or Vira Narasimha Raya.
Iltutmish’s decision to refuse asylum to Jalal ad-Din is considered a wise diplomatic move that saved the nascent Delhi Sultanate from a potential Mongol invasion. Timur’s invasion marked the end of the Tughluq dynasty’s effective rule over northern India. Vasco da Gama’s arrival marked the beginning of European sea trade with India and paved the way for colonial rule.