Imam Ali (a.s.) would never resort to atrocities in order to achieve victory
Another characteristic of the political behavior of the Commander of the Faithful (a.s.) was that he did not resort to oppressing people, telling lies and carrying out oppressive measures. In the beginning of the Commander of the Faithful's (a.s.) caliphate, some people said to him that he should show some consideration for the influential personalities in society and that he should give them a larger share of public funds.
They said, "Do not make them disobey you. Rather, you should attract their hearts". He said, "Do you command me to achieve victory with oppression. By Allah, I won't do so as long as the world goes on and as long as one star leads another in the sky" [Nahjul Balaghah, Sermon 126]. It was not possible for the Commander of the Faithful (a.s.) to make friends by showing oppression and by adopting wrong and non-Islamic methods.