Giving a bit more thought to the subject, a couple of further reasons for adding the wooden butt pad could be :-
1. From memory, the matchlock I owned had a very heavy long barrel. The butt
pad would be a counterweight to the barrel when holding and firing.
2. Indian people tended to have relatively small frames (ref. tulwar hilts); the
butt pad addition would suit an Arab man with a longer reach.
Here is a rather more "high status" gun, that was in auction in Britain earlier this year, for comparison.
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