At the conclusion of the rains, Khwája Abú-l Hasan also, according to orders, marched from the vicinity of the fort of Alang by way of Baglána towards Násik and Trimbak. When he reached Baglána, the zamíndár of that country, by name Bahar-jí, met him with four hundred horse. * * The Khwája entered the enemy's country by way of the ghát of Jaráhí. He found that the revenue officers and raiyats had left their villages, and had retired into the jungles and hills. So the country was desolate, corn was dear, and the soldiers of the royal army were in want of necessaries. The Khwája then sent detached forces into the hills, and also into the inhabited country, and they returned from each raid with abundance of corn and other necessaries, having killed or taken prisoners many of the enemy. The Be-Nizám* now appointed Mahaldár Khán with a party of horse and foot to vex the royal army at night with rockets. He was also directed to attack the parties sent out to gather fuel and fodder, and to carry off their camels and bullocks whenever he could get a chance. Sháh-nawáz Khán was sent against these assailants, and he, making a forced march of twenty kos, attacked them and put them to flight, and returned with great plunder. The Khwája next sent Khán-zamán to attack the enemy's camp at Sangamnír. This force made forced marches, and reached the camp of the enemy, who dispersed and fled to the fort of Chándor. * *
At the close of the rains, the royal army left its quarters in
Dewalgánw, and marched forth against the Nizám-Sháhís and
the Afgháns. On hearing of this, Mukarrab Khán and the
other rebels left Jálnapúr, where they had passed the rainy
season, and retreated towards Páthrí.*
'Azam Khán, being
informed of their retreat, followed them march by march. When
he reached the village of Rámbhúrí, on the Bán-ganga river, he
learnt that the Nizám-Sháhís had ascended the Bálághát at
Dhárúr,*
and had taken refuge in the fort of that place, while
Khán-Jahán had not yet left his quarters at Bír.*
Khán-Jahán,
having been informed of the movements of the Imperial army,
called in a detachment which he had sent to collect the revenues in
the dependencies of Bír, and awaited the arrival of reinforcements
from Mukarrab Khán, who was at Dhárúr. 'Azam Khán conceived
the design of attacking the forces of the rebel Khán before the
reinforcements could reach him; so he marched from Rámbhúrí to
Mahgánw. Here he received a message from Saf-shikan Khán
Razwí, commandant of the fort of Bír, informing him that Khán-
'Azam Khán left a detachment in charge of his camp at
Machhlí-gánw to follow him quietly while he marched off after
night-fall to attack the rebels. Four gharis of night remained
when he reached Pípalnír, six kos from Bír, when he directed
Saf-shikan Khán to make a demonstration with his force on
Khán-Jahán's flank, so that he might think this small force to
be the whole of the royal army, and refrain from moving away.
Saf-shikan Khán accordingly drew out his force upon a ridge
about a kos in front of the rebel army, which had taken post at
the foot of the hills about four kos from Bír. 'Azíz, son of Khán-
Khán-Jahán, when he found that his retreat was cut off, determined to fight it out. * * But the royal troops forced their way to the top of the hill. Khán-Jahán sent away the elephant litter with his women to Síú-gánw,* and then rallied his troops for a struggle. He sent his nephew Bahádur, in whose courage and daring he had great confidence, against Bahádur Khán and some others of the royal army, who, being few in number, were very hard pressed. They dismounted, and, resolving to sell their lives dearly, they kept up a desperate struggle, and slew many of the enemy. Bahádur Khán received two wounds from arrows, one in his face, the other in his side, and several of his comrades were slain.* Narhar Dás also and many Rájpúts fell. Sipahdár Khán and others, who had mounted the hill on the right, seeing the state of the battle, took shelter behind a stone wall, and kept up a discharge of arrows. Rájá Bihár Singh Bundela now came up from the right wing to support Bahádur Khán. He joined valiantly in the struggle, and many of his men were killed. Rájá Jáí Singh and other rájás who were on another part of the hill, also joined in the fight. 'Azam Khán next came up in haste, and ordered a part of the left wing to advance. At this time, when many of the Imperial officers had fallen, and the result seemed doubtful, the favour of Heaven fell upon the royal forces. The ill-starred Bahádur, observing the successive arrivals of reinforcements for his adversaries, lost heart, and turned to flee with his Afgháns. His father also fled. As the discomfited rebels hurried down the hill, they were harassed by showers of arrows and bullets. A ball struck Bahádur Khán, and he was unable to continue his flight. Paras Rám, a servant of Rájá Bihár Singh's, came up and despatched him with his dagger; then he cut off his head, and sent it with his ring, horse and weapons, to Rájá Bihár Singh, who forwarded them to 'Azam Khán. The Khán gave the horse to the man who had slain Bahádur, the ring he sent to the Emperor, and the head he caused to be set up as a warning over the gate of Bír.
The royal forces pursued the fugitives for three kos, and put many of them to the sword. But as the victors had been in the saddle from the first watch in the evening of one day to the third watch of the next day, and had marched more than thirty kos, men and beasts were both worn out, and were unable to go further. 'Azam Khán then called a halt, to allow of a little rest, and to give stragglers time to come up.
Khán-Jahán and his followers, whose horses were fresh, took advantage of this to improve their distance; but 'Azam Khán sent Muhammad Dakhni and the forces that were in Bír to maintain the pursuit, and he himself, after a brief interval, followed with the main force. When Khán-Jahán learnt that the victors were in full pursuit, he removed his ladies from the howda in which they had been carried by a female elephant, and mounting them on horses rode away with them. Darwesh Muhammad, with a party of pursuers, captured the elephant and howda, and made a number of Afgháns and their women prisoners. Most of Khán-Jahán's men who escaped were wounded, and in their panic they were able to carry off nothing but the clothes they wore and the horses they rode. Khán-Jahán, with a few faithful followers, escaped into the hill-country. * * 'Azam Khán halted at Bír, to give his army a little rest. * * Khán-Jahán then proceeded from Síú-gánw to Bízápúr* and Bhonsla, in the Nizám-Sháhí territory, with the design of going to Daulatábád. On hearing of this movement, 'Azam Khán marched from Bír towards Síú-gánw with 20,000 horse.