The Mughal (Moghul) Empire was established in the Indian subcontinent around 1526 AD. It was founded by Emperor Babur, who was a descendant of the Timurids (from father’s side) and also Genghis Khan (from mother’s side). His full name was Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur and he was originally the ruler of the Ferghana valley in Central Asia (modern day Uzbekistan). Although Babur hailed from the Barlas tribe which was of Mongol (Moghul in Persian) origin, his tribe had embraced the Persian culture and language, and converted to Islam.

Babur encountered a series of setbacks during is reign of Ferghana and after losing his principality there, he wandered towards the Indian subcontinent in hopes of acquiring territories in Hindustan. He raided Kabul in 1504 and started to move southwards with the establishment of a base camp in Peshawar in 1524. In 1526, after his fifth attempt, Babur defeated Ibrahim Shah Lodi, the last of the Delhi Sultans and annexed Delhi and Agra. This fight is called the First Battle of Panipat.

Upon conquering Delhi and Agra, Babur summoned his son Humayun to secure the treasures and resources looted during the battle. Humayun found that the family of the Raja of Gwalior was seeking shelter in Agra after the Raja himself had died at Panipat. He guaranteed their safety in return for the family's most valuable jewel, a very large diamond, called the Koh-i-Noor or "Mountain of Light'. The conquests of Delhi and Agra were followed by a fight with the formidable Rajputs Rana Sanga of Chittor and Raja Hasan Khan Mewatpati. This fight is popularly known as the Battle of Khanwa in which the Rajputs were defeated and the foundation for the Mughal empire was laid by Babur.

Soon thereafter, Babur fell seriously ill. Humayun, his son, was told of a plot by the senior nobles of Babur's court to bypass him and appoint Mahdi Khwaja, Babur's sister's husband, as his successor. He rushed to Agra and arrived there to see that his father was well again. But Mahdi Khwaja had lost all hope of succession to Babur after arrogantly exceeding his authority during Babur's illness. Upon his arrival in Agra it was Humayun himself who fell ill, and was close to dying. Legend says that Babur is said to have circled the sick-bed, crying to God to take his life and not his son's. Babur soon fell ill with a fever and Humayun began to recover. Babur’s last words were apparently said to his son, Humayun, "Do nothing against your brothers, even though they may deserve it."

Babur died at the age of 47 in 1531 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Humayun. Though he wished to be buried in his favorite garden in Kabul, a city he had always loved, he was first buried in a Mausoleum in the capital city of Agra. Roughly nine years later his wishes were fulfilled and Babur was buried in Bagh-e-Babur (Babur Gardens) in Kabul, Afghanistan. The inscription on his tomb reads – If there is a paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it is this.

Babur wrote his memoirs in a book called Baburnama and this work is considered the first true autobiography in Islamic literature. Babur travelled the country, taking in much of the land and its scenery, and began building a series of structures which mixed the pre-existing Hindu intricacies of carved detail with the traditional Muslim designs used by Persians and Turks. To remind himself of the lands he had left behind, Babur began building exquisite gardens in every palace and province, where he would often sit shaded from the fierce Indian sun. He tried to recreate the gardens of Kabul, which he believed were the most beautiful in the world. Babur is popularly believed to have built the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya. However, from the three inscriptions which once adorned the surface of the mosque it becomes apparent that the mosque was constructed during his reign on the orders of Mir Baqi, who was one of the generals of Babur's forces sent towards this region.

Anna Hazare is a prominent leader of the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement. He was born Kisan Baburao Hazare on June 15, 1937 in Bhingar near Ahmednagar. He hailed from a very poor family and moved from his ancestral village of Ralegaon Siddhi to Mumbai. Poverty ended his education after grade 7 and he was selling flowers at Dadar railway station in Mumbai.  Eventually he owned 2 flower shops in Mumbai. In these early years, he became involved in vigilante groups that prevented the poor from being bullied out of their shelters by thugs employed by landlords.

The emergency recruitment measures by the Indian Army during the Indo-China war of 1962, Anna was recruited into the Army and was posted at the border in the Khem Karan sector. He was the sole survivor of an enemy attack and this incident became a turning point in his life. He had considered suicide during one point in his life, but now focused on the meaning of life and death. The war experience convinced him that the reason he was alive was because God wanted him to serve people. He spent his spare time reading Swami Vivekananda, Gandhi and Vinoba Bhave.
Anna survived another road accident while driving the army truck and after that incident, he took honorable discharge after serving the Army for 12 years.

Anna returned to Ralegaon Siddhi to begin its transformation. The village was typical Indian village plagued by acute poverty, deprivation, and fragile ecosystem. He started by using his gratuity from the Army to rebuild the vandalized temple as a focal point for the community.  Some responded with financial donations and others volunteered their labor (shramadaan). Using Vivekananda’s works, he organized the youths into Tarun Mandal.
Liquor and cigarettes were banned and a grain bank was instituted at the village temple. The grain bank provided food security to the needy farmers during times of drought or crop failure. Borrowed grain had to be returned in grain plus additional grain as interest. This ensured nobody in the village had to go hungry or borrow money to buy grain and also prevented distress sale at lower prices during harvest time.
Ralegaon is located at foothills, hence Anna persuaded the villagers to construct watershed embankments to increase ground water level and improve irrigation. Water intensive crops like sugar cane were traded for low water crops like pulses and oil seeds. When Anna Hazare first came to Ralegaon Siddhi only 70 acres of land was irrigated and he converted into about 2,500 acres. He also started dairy cattle breeding as a secondary occupation.

He started pre school, and high school in the village to increase the literacy rate. His moral leadership motivated the village community to shun untouchability and caste discrimination. Marriage expenses were the major cause of debt trap for the villagers. Collective marriages were instituted reducing the marriage expenses.
Hazare campaigned between 1998 and 2006 for amending the Gram Sabha Act, so that the villagers have a say in the development works in their village. The state government initially refused, but eventually gave in due to public pressure. As per the amendments, it is mandatory to seek the sanction of the Gram Sabha (an assembly of all village adults, and not just the few elected representatives in the gram panchayat) for expenditures on development works in the village.

In 1991 Hazare launched the Bhrashtachar Virodhi Jan Aandolan (BVJA) (People's Movement against Corruption), a popular movement to fight against corruption and was responsible for exposing several government officials as well as cabinet ministers in the Maharashtra Govt. his skirmishes with the powerful led to his imprisonment in Yerawada Jail for 3 months. However, all the political parties came in support of Hazare.
In the early 2000s Hazare led a movement in Maharashtra state which forced the state Government to enact a revised Maharashtra Right to Information Act. This Act was later considered as the base document for the Right to Information Act 2005 (RTI), enacted by the Union Government
His leadership during the Lokpal Bill captured the nations and world's attention. He was awarded the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan by Govt of India.
The unbelievable story of his life is summed up well by the great man himself...."I am still bemused as to how this all came about. A pauper living in a temple, who has no money, no power, no wealth; for him the entire country united and spoke in one voice."

The Lokpal bill was first proposed in 1968 by Shanti Bhushan but was not passed in the last 40 years. The bill targets to reign in the corruption by the very people with powers to pass the bill and hence the stalemate for the last four decades. Social activist Anna Hazare .....read more about the Lokpal Bill