Question

Who defeated Humayun in the Battle of Kannauj in 1540 and constructed the Purana Qila of New Delhi?
A) Adil Shah
B) Malik Kafur
C) Bin-Kasim
D) Sher Shah Suri

Answer 1

Hint: The battle of kannauj was one of the biggest battles in which Humayun was involved. The battle took place in the year 1540 in Uttar Pradesh, India. Humayun was defeated by the Afghan army. The battle was a second-term fight between both armies and the first battle was in Chausa. Humayun faced a great loss in that battle too and in the end, he lost his throne in Agra.

Complete answer:
Battle of Kannauj took place on May {17}^{th}, 1540 between the army of Agra led by the great Mughal empire, Humayun, and the army of Afghanistan led by Shershah Suri. The battle was a follow-up for the first battle between the two forces which happened in Chausa. In the battle of Chausa, Humayun listed the majority of his soldiers and former allies refused to help. One of his brothers, Kamran Mirza denied his plea, but the other brother, Hindal Mirza agreed to support Humayun. Regardless, the army of Humayun was defeated and the kingdom of Agra was taken over by Shershah Suri. He started the Suri dynasty in India and its capital was in Sasaram, modern-day Bihar. He died five years after the battle of kannauj.
After taking over the power from Humayun, Suri decided to continue building an old fort that was situated in modern-day Delhi and made it his own fort. The name of the fort was Purana Qila, which translates to ‘The old fort’. The construction of that part was started during the Mauryan empire and Shershah finished it. The name of the fort was also changed by Shershah to Shergrah.
So, the correct answer is Option D.

Note: During his reign of five years, Shershah started a new economic and military administration. He also issued the first known Rupiya instead of "Tanka" and provided a structured postal system in the Indian Subcontinent. Some of his decisions were praised by the Mughal emperors including Akbar. Suri developed Humayun's Dina-panah city and named it Shergarh and revived the historical city of Pataliputra as Patna.