Ala-ud-din Khalji, also known as Juna Khan, was the ruler of the Delhi Sultanate in India from 1296 to 1316. He was the second and most successful sultan of the Turkic Khalji dynasty that ruled from 1290 to 1320. In 1296, he conducted a brilliant and highly profitable raid against the Yadava capital of Devagiri in the Deccan. As sultan, Ala-ud-din increased taxes and enforced direct payment. The taxes helped pay for his powerful, new standing army, which enabled him to strengthen and extend his authority. Around 1300, the army repelled a number of Mongol attacks. In 1299, Ala-ud-din attacked western India, where he conquered Gujarat and then captured several strongholds in Rajasthan. Ala-ud-din was shrewd and ruthless, and he ruled by terror and spying. Fighting among his heirs destroyed his dynasty within four years of his death.
