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DiwaniAam

DiwaniAam, also written Diwan-i-Aam, is a term from Persian that translates to the Hall of Public Audience. It referred to the public audience hall in Mughal and other Islamic courts where the emperor would hear petitions, dispense justice, and meet common subjects. The concept emphasized accessibility of the ruler to ordinary people and served as a formal setting for addressing grievances and presenting requests.

In practice, the DiwaniAam was the place where officials and petitioners approached the emperor, often under

Architecturally, the Diwan-i-Aam was typically a large, open hall with a raised dais or throne for the

Today, DiwaniAam is studied as a key institution illustrating the Mughal approach to governance—combining centralized authority

the
supervision
of
court
ministers
and
officials
who
recorded
complaints
and
conveyed
orders.
It
stood
in
contrast
to
the
Diwan-i-Khas,
the
Hall
of
Private
Audience,
where
the
emperor
met
nobles,
ambassadors,
and
select
guests
in
a
more
ceremonial
setting.
The
proceedings
in
the
DiwaniAam
could
involve
petitions
for
land
grants,
relief
from
penalties,
or
redress
of
grievances,
and
decisions
were
often
issued
as
formal
orders
or
fines.
emperor,
flanked
by
courts,
arcades,
and
repetitive
arches.
It
is
found
in
several
major
Mughal
complexes,
including
Fatehpur
Sikri,
the
Red
Fort
in
Delhi,
and
Agra
Fort,
where
the
hall
formed
part
of
the
imperial
gravity
and
public-facing
functions
of
the
palace.
with
a
procedural
forum
for
public
petitions,
embedded
in
the
architectural
and
ceremonial
language
of
the
empire.