Nawab Hafiz Sir Muhammad Ibrahim Ali Khan Bahadur GCSI GCIE (8 November 1849 – 23 June 1930) was the Nawab of Tonk from 1867 until his death in 1930.

Ibrahim Ali Khan
Nawab, Sir, GCSI GCIE
Ibrahim Ali Khan of Tonk
Ibrahim Ali Khan in 1910.
Nawab of Tonk
Reign20 December 1867 – 23 June 1930
PredecessorMuhammad Ali Khan
SuccessorSaadat Ali Khan
BornMuhammad Ibrahim Ali Khan
(1849-11-08)8 November 1849
Tonk State, Rajputana Agency, British India (present-day Rajasthan, India)
Died23 June 1930(1930-06-23) (aged 80)
Tonk State, Rajputana Agency, British India (present-day Rajasthan, India)
Begum6
Issue36
HouseSalarzai
FatherMuhammad Ali Khan
ReligionIslam
SignatureIbrahim Ali Khan's signature

He ascended the throne of Tonk following the deposition of his father by the British, who was charged guilty of mass murder. He attended all three Delhi Durbars. In 1901, he passed a law for the conservation of wildlife and the environment in his state. This was also the first law enacted in present day Rajasthan for such a purpose.

Early life

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Ibrahim Ali Khan was born on 8 November 1849 at Tonk State, British India. His father Muhammad Ali Khan was the third Nawab of Tonk. His mother was a daughter of Ahmad Ali Khan.

In 1864, Ibrahim Ali Khan started a practise of sacrificing camels on Eid al-Adha. The family discontinued the practise in 2014, after Rajasthan declared the camel as a state animal.[1]

Reign

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Ibrahim Ali Khan's father Muhammad Ali Khan was found guilty in the mass-killings of the Thakur of Lawa state and his relatives. As a result, he was deposed by the British and exiled to Varanasi with an yearly pension of 60,000 (equivalent to 26 million or US$320,000 in 2023).[2] Subsequently, Ibrahim Ali Khan ascended the throne of Tonk on 20 December 1867 at the age of 20. As a punishment, his gun salute was reduced to 17 from 21.

As the Tonk State was in debts to the British at the time of Ibrahim Ali Khan's coronation, a regency council under the leadership of his grand-uncle Ubaidullah Khan was appointed. The council was removed in 1870 and Ibrahim Ali Khan was investitured to rule the state. At the 1877 Delhi Durbar, he was given a salute of 17 guns in the presence of Edward VII, the Prince of Wales. He also attended the other two Delhi Durbars held at 1903 and 1911. He was appointed a Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India in the 1913 New Year Honours.

In 1901, Ibrahim Ali Khan passed the Shikar Act of 1901. This was the first law enacted in present day Rajasthan for the conservation of natural resources, wildlife and the environment.

Ibrahim Ali Khan died on 23 June 1930 at Tonk. He was succeeded by Saadat Ali Khan, a son of Ladli Begum.

Personal life

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Ibrahim Ali Khan married six times. While four of his wives were from the royal family, one wife was from the royal family of Rampur State. His wives are - Nawab Ladli Begum, Nawab Hajira Begum, Nawab Maimuna Begum, Nawab Mulka Jamil-uz-Zamani Begum, Amir-uz-Zamani Begum and Mubarak-uz-Zamani Begum. He fathered twenty-one sons and fifteen daughters.

Ibrahim Ali Khan's full name with titles is "His Highness, Wazir-ul-Mulk, Nawab Hafiz Sir Muhammad Ibrahim Ali Khan Sahib Bahadur, Saulat Jung, Nawab of Tonk.

References

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  1. ^ Khan, Shoeb (5 October 2014). "Tonk royals abandon practice of sacrificing camel". The Times of India. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  2. ^ S.N. Sadasivan (2005). Political a nd Administrative Integration of Princely States. Mittal Publications. p. 9. ISBN 9788170999683.

Further reading

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  • Ghosh, Loknath (1879), The Modern History of the Indian Chiefs, Rajas, Zamindars, & C, ISBN 9781446036365