At the peak of his reign, Prithviraj had annexed vast regions of India to his kingdom, and his fame had spread all across the subcontinent and to Afghanistan. Many lesser kings were envious and wary of his power, including Raja
Jaichand of
Kannauj. Jaichand's daughter, Samyukta, was a headstrong girl who was known for her bewitching beauty. She is said to have fallen in love with Prithviraj–like the two other princesses, Shashivrata and Padmavati, before her—as his reputation dazzled her. She desired nobody but him. For his part, Prithviraj had heard of Samyukta's loveliness and fell in love with her as well. However, Jaichand and Prithviraj were rivals. On finding out about the affair, Raja Jaichand was outraged that a romance had been budding behind his back. Jaichand decided to insult Prithviraj and arranged a
svayamvara for his daughter in 1185 CE. He invited royalty from far and wide to the ceremony, every eligible prince and king—except Prithviraj. He then commissioned a clay statue of Prithviraj, which served as a
dvarapala (or, a figurative "doorman") to Jaichand's court. Prithviraj Chauhan, on hearing about the impending
svayamvara, devised a plan to elope with the bride-to-be. On the day of the ceremony, Samyukta walked through the court holding the ceremonial garland, ignoring the gazes of her ardent suitors. She passed through the door and put the garland around the neck of Prithviraj's statue, declaring him her husband. Prithiviraj, who meanwhile was hiding behind the statue, caught Samyukta up in his arms, set her on his horse, and whisked her away to Delhi. Raja Jaichand was enraged. This led to a rift between Delhi and
Kannauj, which was later taken advantage of by
Mohammad Ghori of Afghanistan. == Historicity ==