Accession Khusrau Khan initially planned to install a son of the deceased Sultan on the throne as a puppet ruler. However, his advisors suggested that a prince would have him killed after his accession, and therefore, he decided to claim the throne himself. After killing the Sultan and potential claimants to the throne, the conspirators persuaded or compelled the various nobles to come to the first floor of the royal palace at midnight, and accept Khusrau Khan as the new king. According to Barani, the following nobles were held as "hostages" at midnight:
Ayn al-Mulk Multani, Wahiduddin Quraishi, Bahauddin
Dabir, and three sons of
Malik Qara Beg. No information is available about the discussions between the conspirators and the nobles, but by the sunrise, all the nobles at the palace had accepted Khusrau Khan's accession to the throne as
Sultan Nasiruddin. Shortly after ascending the throne, Khusrau Khan married the widow of Mubarak Shah. This marriage was declared invalid after Khusrau Khan was deposed, as according to the Muslim law, the widow could remarry only when four
menstruation periods had passed after her husband's death.
Administration Khusrau Khan's officers included the following men, many of whom had served Alauddin: •
Tajul Mulk Malik Wahiduddin Quraishi was re-appointed as the
wazir; he died or retired soon after, when the post of
wazir was given to Ayn al-Mulk Multani •
Malik Ayn al-Mulk Multani was given the title
Alimul mulk •
Malik Hasan,
Malik Hussain, and
Malik Badruddin Abu Bakr – the sons of
Malik Qara Beg – were given the offices of their father. •
Malik Fakhruddin Jauna, a son of Tughluq, was given the office of
akhur-bek • Shaista Khan, a co-conspirator and a son of Muhammad Qirat Qimar, was appointed the minister of war • Yusuf Sahi, another co-conspirator, was given the title of Sufi Khan and appointed as a counseller •
Malik Tamar was appointed as the governor of
Chanderi • Kamaluddin Sufi • Kafur Muhrdar was given the post of
amir-i hajib • Shihab was given the post of
naib-i amir-i hajib • Tigin was appointed as the governor of
Awadh • Bahauddin Dabir was given the title
Azam-ul Mulk, and re-appointed as the minister of the secretariat, a post that he held during Alauddin's reign • Sumbul Hatim Khan •
Malik Yak Lakkhi Qadr Khan (not to be confused with Yak Lakkhi, the governor of Devagiri and Samana) • Ambar Bughra Khan • Talbagha, son of Yaghda • Talbagha Nagauri • Saif Chaush •
Malik Qabul, who had been given the post of
shuhna-i manda by Alauddin • Ahmad Ayaz, the
kotwal of
Siri, and his son Muhammad Ayaz The Baradus do not appear to have been granted any important posts in Khusrau Khan's government, presumably because they were illiterate. However, several of them appear to have been rewarded with titles, cash grants, and military commands. For example: • Husamuddin, the younger brother of Khusrau Khan, was given the title
Khan-i Khanan • Randhol, an uncle of Khusrau Khan, was given the title
Rai Rayan; he was also given the house and wealth of Qazi Ziyauddin • Two other uncles of the new Sultan – probably Nag and Kajb Brahma – were given the highest commands in the Baradu contingent • Jaharya, the murderer of the preceding sultan, was given pearls and diamonds
Religious outlook Barani portrays the killing of Mubarak Shah as a Hindu-Muslim conflict. He claims that 5–6 days after Khusrau Khan's ascension to the throne, the Baradus and other Hindus started idol worship in the palace, and would sit on the
Quran. The Baradus obtained control of the houses of the former Muslim nobles, along with their women and slave-girls. The Hindus rejoiced at Khusrau Khan's ascension, hoping to weaken the Muslims, and make Delhi a Hindu-majority city again. Additionally, Khusrau’s prohibition of cow slaughter alienated many Muslim nobles, who after just four months transferred their loyalty to Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, a popular and experienced commander who had repulsed several Mongol invasions in the Punjab. Pakistani-Canadian academic
Aziz Ahmad writes that after usurping the kingdom, Khusrau Khan "reverted to his ancient faith, began a reign of terror heaping dishonour on Muslim nobles". According to Indian historian
Mohammad Habib, Barani's narrative is unreliable, and contradicted by more reliable sources. Khusrau Khan wished to be seen as a normal Muslim monarch, and had the
khutba in the mosques read in his name. Apart from Qazi Ziyauddin, whose wife and child had run away after his killing, the Baradus did not seize houses of Muslim nobles, many of whom were appointed to regular government posts under Khusrau. == Overthrow ==