Dabir-i-Khas dabir means secretary and dabir-i-khas means private secretary. Of the diwans or departments maintained by the government of the Delhi Sultanate, Diwan-i-Insha occupied an important place. Every sovereign order was drafted in this department, and after receiving the approval of the sovereign it was copied in a register and then despatched. The duty of drafting was given to Dabir-i-Khas (chief secretary or private secretary). In course of time the duties of the department increased, and so a number of assistants called Dabir were appointed in the department of Dabir-i-Khas. The Dabir-i-Khas acquired such familiarity with the affairs of the state that his post was sometimes taken as a stepping stone to the high post of wazir. In Bengal also there was a functionary known as Dabir-i-Khas. Rup Goswami, as known from the contemporary Bengali literature, was the Dabir-i-Khas of Sultan Alauddin husain shah. [Abdul Karim]