[jyotirmoy]

As you stroll the lanes of Chandni Chowk in Delhi with glittering shops selling myriad things, silver smiths carving out intricate designs ask some one about the dark night that descended on 11th. March 1739. It all started because of a rumour!
Around this time a rumour began doing the rounds that Nadir was dead, which was not only celebrated by the inhabitants of Delhi, but also made them bold enough to actually attack a few Persian soldiers. The result? On March 11, 1739, on an order from Nadir Shah his soldiers plundered Delhi and massacred its citizens. The areas of Chandni Chowk, the fruit market, the Dariba bazaar and the buildings around Jama Masjid where the noble & rich lived were burnt to cinders. Each and every inhabitant of the area was killed to make an example. Almost 40000 men women & children were slaughtered. Blood flowed on the streets like water. The city of Delhi was deserted, during the day vultures & during night jackals feasted on dead bodies. The royal treasury was sacked and its contents seized. When Nadir Shah left Delhi after 57 days, he also took along the fabulous Peacock Throne of the Mughals and the Koh-i-noor with him. Along with them went the last vestiges of Mughal pride and splendour.
Moved to much sorrow and tears, Mir Taqi Mir, a famous contemporary Urdu poet wrote about what was left of Delhi:

Once through this ruined city did I pass
I espied a lonely bird on a bough and asked
‘What knowest thou of this wilderness?’
It replied: I can sum it up in two words:
‘Alas, Alas!’