How did the East India Company establish trade in India and enter the political scene?

East India Company started its first factory in West Bengal, on the banks of the River Hugli, in 1651. As trade developed, the Company asked local merchants, who acted as middle 'men for them, to come and settle near the 'factory'. By 1696, the Company built a fort around the settlement of merchants. In 1698, the company got zamindari rights for 3 villages, from the Mughal ruler. Thus they entered the political scene in India.