The motive behind Shahjahan’s Balkh campaign was to

The correct answer is Option 1. The primary strategic motive behind Shah Jahan’s Balkh and Badakhshan campaign (1646-47) was to secure the northwestern frontiers of the Mughal Empire by establishing a friendly or puppet ruler in the region.

The rationale for this campaign included:

• Buffer Zone: Balkh and Badakhshan bordered Kabul; instability there, caused by the civil war between Nazar Muhammad and his son Abdul Aziz, threatened the security of the Mughal province of Kabul.
• Strategic Security: Shah Jahan aimed to prevent hostile Uzbek factions from consolidating power near the Indian frontier.

While the Mughals held an emotional attachment to their ancestral lands (Option 2), the actual military objective was pragmatic security, not a full-scale reconquest of Samarkand. Similarly, while the Amu Daria (Option 3) was a natural boundary, the immediate trigger was the administrative vacuum in the borderlands. Option 4 is incorrect as the focus was regional stability rather than indefinite expansion.