The Prince sent this letter with the camel to Zú-l fikár Jang (Sa'ádat Khán), who forwarded it again to I'timádu-d daula. He sent an answer to Ahmad Afghán that he was to come and throw himself as a suppliant before the Prince, and do homage to him, and he would then endeavour to procure his pardon. Seeing from this advice that there was no hope of his stipulations being acceded to, Ahmad Afghán prepared for a general action, and on Friday, the 21st Rabí'u-l awwal, when three or four gharís of the day had passed—i.e. about eight o'clock A.M. —he opened fire from his guns. A ball from a cannon reached the tents of I'timádu-d daula Bahadur Nusrat Jang, and passing through them struck the wazír on his side, and, strange to say, all his attendants and followers, who were standing close around him, escaped unhurt. His son, Mu'ínu-l Mulk, was at the batteries at the time, and hearing of his father's accident, came to him at once in great distress, and found him just expiring. A minute or two after he died. * * In the mean time news arrived that Ahmad Afghán had got inside the intrenchment with his force, and was fighting there. Mu'ínu-l Mulk set out immediately to oppose the enemy's further progress, and this intelligence reached the Prince, Abú-l Mansúr Khán Bahádur (Safdar Jang), Rája Isrí Singh, and the other sardárs, who mounted their horses with the greatest expedition. * * They fought so well with the enemy, that with the greatest exertion, and a display of fiery zeal, they destroyed some thousands, defeated the Afghán army, and followed up the fight for one or two miles, slaughtering and wounding. * * The enemy, who had at that time lost half his force, was unable to withstand the attack of Safdar Jang, and seeing a favourable opening, bore down on the right wing of the Royal army, which had been deserted by Isrí Singh. Safdar Jang, on hearing of the attack in this quarter, left Mu'ínu-l Mulk and came to the assistance of the Prince's portion of the army, and his force committed the greatest havoc. Ahmad Afghán then fled with the remnant of his men, and taking shelter in a small fort, began to open a fire of cannon, and killed a number of men. To attack this fort, several large guns were brought up, and planted ready; but night came on before any attack was made. During the night Ahmad, seeing that it was useless to hold out any longer against the superior force of the Prince, who had gained a decided advantage, he silenced his guns, and under favour of the darkness fled, no one knew in what direction. The Prince with his army remained under arms the whole night; and when morning came, they were surprised to find no trace of the enemy.
The army remained in the same position till the 25th Rabí'u-l awwal, when messengers arrived from Ahmad Afghán bearing again the same proposals for peace, viz. the cession of Kábul and Thattá, and the restoration of the money which Nádir Sháh had taken. The Prince, however, would not listen to these terms.
As the enemy was completely defeated, and all his forces totally routed, all messages for peace were merely sent as excuses to gain time so as to enable his treasure and baggage to be brought out from Sirhind. * * When Ahmad Afghán saw that his object could not be gained by peaceable means, and that he could not get out his property from Sirhind, he came out on the 26th to offer battle again. The Prince, too, came out to battle with all his forces. The battle was carried on for some time with artillery only. The enemy retreated before the superior force of the Prince, and Ahmad Afghán himself kept at a distance, viewing the two armies. As the fire approached him, he avoided it and fled. The artillery played the whole day, but ceased their fire at eventide. All that night the Prince's men stood to their arms. The next morning the battle was renewed on all sides, but the Afgháns could not gain the superiority. When two watches of the day had passed, Ahmad Afghán took the road to Lúdhiyána in flight, and sent a message through Safdar Jang to the Prince, that Muhammad Takí Khán was coming to make a treaty. Safdar Jang, believing this to be true, withdrew his men from the pursuit, thus allowing the enemy time to withdraw all his property and treasure towards Lúdhiyána. * * Orders were speedily issued for pursuit, and they were responded to with the greatest alacrity by the army, who followed up and slew all the stragglers, and those who were worn out with flight, of Ahmad's army, and took all the swords, horses, and camels they could find. Whoever got the plunder was allowed to keep it for himself. Many were made prisoners, and the number of horses, mules, etc., which were captured, was immense. On the next day the army halted, and on the 29th Rabí'u-l awwal the Prince marched into Lúdhiyána, a distance of twenty miles. * *
At that time Safdar Jang had the full command of the army, and no one could do anything without his orders. To him the Prince gave his commands that they should march towards Láhore, to prevent the possibility of the enemy attempting to take that city after he had recruited his strength a little. Safdar Jang did not agree to this plan, and endeavoured to delay by every kind of stratagem, and two or three days afterwards, having marched five or six kos from Lúdhiyána, he encamped, hoping that news might reach the Emperor of what was going on. At last the Emperor consented that the Prince, Sa'ádat Khán Bahádur, and Safdar Jang should come back to Court, and that Mu'ínu-l Mulk and Násir Khán should march to Láhore and Kábul. The Prince sent off his tents for Dehlí the next day, and on the evening of the 23rd he invested Mu'ínu-l Mulk with the command of the army, and sent him off towards Láhore. On the 24th, having despatched Násir Khán towards Kábul, he set out himself in the morning for Dehlí, and having reached his first stage, sent a letter to the Emperor, which reached his presence on the 26th Rabí'u-s sání. Mu'ínu-l Mulk marched with his force stage by stage to Láhore.
The Emperor was naturally of a weak constitution. * * He was frequently subject to bad fevers, and at this time he was thus afflicted, when he one day was carried in a litter to the Masjid Sangi Gate, which was inside the fort, and there sat in state with all his nobles and attendants. All of a sudden he fainted away. * * He recovered a little from his fainting fit, * * but his speech had entirely left him. Every moment the Emperor's illness changed its symptoms, and he was insensible during the whole night. The next morning, on the 27th Rabí'u-s sání, in the thirty-first year of his reign, A.H. 1161 (15 April, 1748 A.D.), the Emperor breathed his last. Those who were present at the time of his decease were of opinion that the wisest course to pursue would be to conceal from the public the news of the Emperor's death till the arrival of the Prince, and they accordingly enjoined strict silence on all those who were aware of the melancholy event which had happened. They then put the corpse into the wooden case of a European clock, which was very long, and stood in the Hayát Bakhsh Garden, and for a shroud they procured a cloth from the dárogha of the kitchen, pretending it was required for the dinner table. They buried him in the garden. Letters were then despatched to the Prince, informing him of the dangerous illness of the Emperor, and urging him to come to Dehlí with all possible speed, but they made no mention of the Emperor's death.