Fatawa-i Alamgiri

Timeline

1. c. 1664–1669Delhi · DelhiAurangzeb, under the imperial title Alamgiri, ordered the compilation of authoritative Hanafi rulings, commissioning Sheikh Nizam of Burhanpur to head a committee that extracted texts on marriage, property, transactions and judicial procedure from palace libraries, aiming to reduce divergent discretion among qadis in various regions.
2. 1670–1672Delhi · DelhiAfter about eight years of compilation, the work was finalized around 1672, becoming the standard reference tool for Mughal judicial organs to consult established Hanafi doctrine. It limited the room for arbitrary issuance of fatwas but did not eliminate the diversity of opinions within the school.
3. 1672Hanafi judicial sphere of South Asia · South AsiaAfter completion it was long cited by Hanafi judges and madrasas in South Asia, and spread to Ottoman Anatolia and elsewhere. During the British colonial period, courts hearing Muslim marriage and inheritance cases still frequently consulted this compilation, and its legacy continued into legal education in modern Pakistan, India and other places.