Short answers, pulled from the story.
Ahmad Shah Durrani, born Ahmad Khan Abdali between 1720 and 1722, was the first ruler and founder of the Durrani Empire. He is often regarded as the founder of modern Afghanistan and is called Ahmad Shah Baba, meaning Ahmad Shah the Father, by Afghans.
Ahmad Shah came to power in 1747 after Nader Shah was assassinated by his own guard at Quchan. He rode to Kandahar with his Durrani regiments and was raised to the throne through a nine-man military council, which scholars describe as a military coup rather than an election.
The third battle of Panipat, fought on the 14th of January during Ahmad Shah's fifth invasion of India, has been called the largest battle of the eighteenth century. Ahmad Shah's forces destroyed the Maratha army, with at least 75,000 Marathas killed, ending Maratha influence in Northern India.
Ahmad Shah launched a series of invasions of India over twenty-four years beginning in 1748. Of his more than fifteen major military campaigns, nine were centered in present-day India, alongside three in Khorasan and three in Afghan Turkestan.
Ahmad Shah invaded India to plunder wealth, since Afghanistan was a relatively poor country, following conquerors such as Mahmud of Ghazni. He also invaded to establish political dominance and used the cause of holy war to direct most of his campaigns toward India.
Ahmad Shah Durrani died in 1772 in Maruf, his health worn down by years of nonstop campaigning. He was buried in his own mausoleum in Kandahar, next to the Kirka Sharif shrine he built to hold the cloak of Muhammad.