Razia became the Sultan of Delhi in the year:

Razia (Raziya) became the Sultan of Delhi in 1236 CE, and ruled until 1240.

How she came to the throne:

• Iltutmish had nominated his daughter Razia as his successor, as he considered her more capable than his sons.
• According to tradition, he said that she was better than many sons.
• However, after his death in April 1236, the nobles placed his son Ruknuddin Firoz on the throne.
• Ruknuddin was a pleasure-loving and incompetent ruler, and the real power was in the hands of his mother, Shah Turkan, who was cruel to her rivals.
• The people of Delhi, supported by some nobles, rose against them.
• Razia appealed to the people of Delhi, wearing red clothes (the sign of seeking justice), and won their support.
• Ruknuddin Firoz and his mother were removed and killed, and Razia became Sultan in late 1236.

Her rule:

• She was the first and only woman ruler of the Delhi Sultanate.
• She tried to rule like a man: she gave up the veil, dressed in a tunic and a cap, held court in public, and led her armies on horseback.
• She tried to reduce the power of the Turkish nobles by appointing non-Turks to important posts.
• Her coins described her as "Umdat-un-Niswan" (pillar of women).

Opposition and fall:

• The powerful Turkish nobles opposed her, because she was a woman and because she wanted to rule independently.
• Rebellions broke out in the provinces.
• In 1240, she was overthrown, and later she was killed.

Minhaj-us-Siraj's view:

NCERT notes that Minhaj-us-Siraj recognised that she was more able and qualified than all her brothers, but he was not comfortable with having a woman ruler.

Women rulers in Indian history:

• Didda of Kashmir was another woman ruler of early medieval India.
• Chand Bibi of Ahmadnagar and Rani Durgavati of Gondwana were later women rulers.

Why not the other options?

• ✗1206 CE was the beginning of the Sultanate.
• ✗1240 CE was the end of her reign.
• ✗1246 CE was the accession of a later Sultan.