Assertion (A): During the reign of Shahjahan, Dara Sikoh was sent on expedition to Balkha, Badakh-shan and Qandahar. Reason (R): The expedition sent by Shahjahan to the Middle East was a marvellous success.

1. The question presents an Assertion (A) and a Reason (R) about Shahjahan's expeditions. 2. Assertion (A): States that during Shahjahan's reign, Dara Sikoh was sent on expedition to Balkh, Badakhshan, and Qandahar. Shahjahan did launch major campaigns in Central Asia (Balkh and Badakhshan) and against Qandahar. While Prince Murad Baksh and later Aurangzeb led the main Balkh/Badakhshan campaigns, Dara Sikoh was involved in the later, ultimately unsuccessful, attempts to recapture Qandahar from the Persians. So, the assertion is broadly true regarding Dara's involvement in the Qandahar campaigns. 3. Reason (R): States that the expedition sent by Shahjahan to the Middle East was a marvellous success. This is false. The Mughal campaigns in Balkh and Badakhshan were costly failures, forcing a retreat. The repeated attempts to regain Qandahar also failed. These expeditions were far from successful. 4. Therefore, Assertion (A) is true, but Reason (R) is false. 5. This corresponds to option (C).