The politics over has deep roots in Gujarati history
of Gujarat, fled from Nahrwala and went to Raja Ram Deo of Deogir. The wives and daughters, the treasure and elephants of Rai Karan fell in the hands of the Muhammadans. All Gujarat became prey to the invaders…”
Vaghela lost the battle. His wife, Kaula Devi, also known as Kamla Rani, was taken to Delhi where Khilji made her his concubine.
Vaghela and his two daughters escaped to Baglan, now in Maharashtra, with the help of King Ramdeva of Devgadh. Meanwhile, in Delhi, Kaula Devi’s beauty won Khilji’s heart. After a few years, she asked Khilji to get her daughter Deval to Delhi. Khilji’s army went on to attack Vaghela in Devgadh.
According to Nandshanakar Mehta’s Karan Ghelo, while in exile, Vaghela had reluctantly agreed to get one of his daughters, Deval married to Shankaldev, the prince of Devgadh to save her from falling in Turkic hands. The novel describes Deval’s pain and longing for love, succinctly. But Khilji’s attack was ferocious and Vaghela fought unsuccessfully, once more, and was killed. Deval was taken to Delhi, where Khilji’s eldest son, Khizr fell in love with her, but his mother was opposed to the union.
Aamir Khusrow wrote a masnavi (romantic poem) on Deval Rani and Khizr Khan. The story of love flowering between a Turkic prince and a Hindu girl, in adverse circumstances, was termed as a work of fiction by many in the last century. But it nevertheless became an unalterable part of Khusrow’s writing. Khusrow’s narration depicted in detail the “profound love” between Deval and Khizar. Khizar was killed by his father’s confidants, who wanted to grab power after Khilji’s death. Khusrow narrates how in those lonely and difficult days, a Gujarati woman stood heroically behind her Turkic husband.
In Gujarat, the mention of Khilji, for obvious reasons, revives memories of tumultuous times and the fall of the glorious Patan, and the loot by Khilji’s army of Cambay, Surat and the temple of Somnath.
Bhansali’s film Padmavati is about Rajput history, but in Gujarat, the BJP doesn’t want to forget, more so in the time of election, the two Gujarati women—Kaula Devi, who was added to Khilji’s harem and Deval Rani, who was “won away” from her father and presented as a “trophy” to the Khilji clan. And this is the reason why Chief Minister Vijay Rupani has decided not to let the film release in Gujarat. It is a different matter that the Congress is yet to react to the BJP’s game. Also, behind the scenes, BJP leaders are making their displeasure clear about the “love story” of Khizr and Deval, which, according to many of them, comes in the category of love jihad and much more.