AH 1068-1070 / AD 1657-1660

Shah Shuja was the second of the four sons of Shah Jahan, the eldest being Dara Shikoh, followed by Aurangzeb and Murad Bakhsh. All four sons held posts as governors during their father’s reign. Shah Shuja was the governor of Bengal and was stationed at Rajmahal in Bihar, then known as Akbarnagar.

When Shah Jahan fell ill, a power struggle ensued between the four brothers, Shuja crowned himself emperor, took imperial titles, the Khutba was read and coins were struck at Akbarnagar and Patna. With Aurangzeb’s burgeoning strength and domination over the other brothers, Aurangzeb marched from Punjab to the east where Shah Shuja’s army was routed. Shuja fled to Arakan and later to Tripura.