Official Answer Key & Detailed Solution
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Correct Answer: Option (B) — 2 only
Concept & Option Breakdown
Standard Reference VerifiedStatement 1 is incorrect: The first significant Mongol threat occurred much earlier, during the reign of Shams-ud-din Iltutmish (1221 CE), when Genghis Khan pursued the fugitive Khwarezm Shah Jalal al-Din Mangburni up to the river Indus.
Statement 2 is correct: During Ala-ud-din Khalji's reign, the Mongols launched several major assaults, notably under Qutlugh Khwaja (1299) and Targhi (1303), the latter of which laid siege directly to Delhi while Alauddin was occupied at Chittor.
Statement 3 is incorrect: Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq successfully countered Mongol invasions (such as that led by Tarmashirin) and did not lose northwestern territories to the Mongols.
The Mongol Empire expanded rapidly in the early 1200s under Genghis Khan, which chronologically aligns with the Slave Dynasty (Iltutmish) rather than the much later Khalji dynasty (1290s). Identifying this timeline mismatch rules out Statement 1, eliminating options A and C.
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