February 16, 1952

Abolition of Jagirdari —A L a n d m a r k in the H i s t o r y o f Rajasthan

H. C. Saxena

THE. cons t i tu t ion of R a j p u t States have undergone p ro found

changes d u r i n g the last three or four years. T h e rulers have pa r ted w i t h the i r powers pa r t l y due to the forces of t ime and p a r t l y to in te­g r a t i o n w i t h the I n d i a n U n i o n . T h e i r i n d i v i d u a l iden t i ty has been dissolved, loyal ty to small u n i t has been transferred to I n d i a as a whole . T h e age-old f o r m of gov­e rnment has disappeared. These, changes haw ' deal t a final b l o w to any su rv iv ing notions of feudal ism tha t may have s t i l l l ingered. T h e Jagirdars have surrendered thei r various privileges a n d adminis t ra­t ive powers at the behest of a popu la r government .

N o w the Rajas than Govern­m e n t has decided to resume the Jagirs on payment of compensation equal to seven times of the net income w h i c h they have fixed as 35 per cent of the to ta l gross i n ­come after ca lcu la t ing a l l b i g and small Jagirdars on a flat r a t e . '

T h e his tory of the system w h i c h is n o w be ing f inal ly abolished goes back to the days w h e n the i nvad ­i n g forces of I s l a m led to a large-scale dispersion of Rajputs f rom the fer t i le and open parts of the coun­t r y to the sandy and inaccessible in te r io r , where they spread them­selves in the h i l l s , wastes and the a r i d lands of Rajas than w h i c h they he ld as the second l ine of defence against the fore ign invaders. In the th i r t een th century the d o m i ­nant clans of the Rajputs were settled in these areas in w h i c h they are found today. T h e kings of D e l h i exercised l i t t l e effective ju r i s ­d i c t i o n over the i n t e r io r parts where the Rajputs r emained inde­pendent . There was a b r ie f b u t dazzl ing and b r i l l i a n t rev iva l of R a j p u t strength under Rana Sanga of M e w a r . Fortunes rose' and fe l l . D u r i n g M o g h u l rule , t hough the Ra jpu t s pa id some t r ibu te to the Emperors of D e l h i as a n o m i n a l suzeran, yet they were independent in the i r i n t e rna l admin i s t r a t ion and so the c lan organisat ion was not-interfered w i t h .

In the one h u n d r e d years fo l l ow­ing the dea th of Aurangzeb, the

' In the second draft b i l l , the amount of compensation has been raised from 7 to 10 limes and the period from 14 to 15 equal instalments.

R a j p u t states were threatened by Mara thas , and in t e rna l feuds broke out among themselves. Dis ­in tegra t ion and chaos was ended by 1818, w h e n Rajas than, com­pletely disorganised, was taken over by Br i t i sh under the i r protec­t i o n and the in t e rna l s tructure of the R a j p u t states was stabilised. But the o l d and archaic i n s t i t u ­t ion based on c lan organisat ion was not affected. I t survived the emer­gence of a s trong Cen t ra l Govern ­ment . T h u s , h is tor ica l ly , the l and tenure system in Rajas than has remained unchanged w i t h o u t any serious mod i f i ca t ion d u r i n g a pe r iod of nearly seven h u n d r e d years.

W h e n the Br i t i sh settled perma­nent ly in I n d i a , they in t roduced cer ta in laws and regulat ions for successful admin i s t r a t ion . I t was d u r i n g this pe r iod tha t various sys­tems of l and revenue settlement and tenure were evolved by the early Britishers. T h e Jag i r system as i t evolved in Rajas than has cha­racteristics w h i c h different iate i t on the one h a n d f r o m the. Jagir as an i n s t i t u t i on developed i n M u s l i m I n d i a , and on the o ther f r o m the later l and lo rd i sm of the Br i t i sh per iod . T h e fortunes of these Chiefs and rulers of pe t ty Jagirs, after the collapse of the M o g h u l power , were not affected m u c h on the cont ra ry , t he i r pos i t ion was strengthened unde r the Br i t i sh , w h o made po l i t i ca l settlements w i t h the. princes and made t h e m inde­pendent a n d supreme in the i r States.

T h e c lan system in Rajas than was something m u c h stronger t h a n feudalism. T o d , the w e l l k n o w n his tor ian of Rajas than, cites an interest ing case to i l lus t ra te the po in t . Once the subordinate Chiefs of J o d h p u r h a d been d r i v e n away f r o m the i r l and by the oppression of the i r Maharaja—-they w r o t e to T o d i n 1821 thus :

" T h e M a h a r a j a and ourself are of one stock for generations. O u r forefathers were the i r ministers and advisers. W h e r ­ever M e w a r was concerned, there ou r forefather were to be f o u n d and w i t h the i r lines pre­served the l and . . . . W h e n our services are acceptable, then , he is our l o r d ; w h e n not , we are again his b ro ther and k i n d r e d

c l a iman t l ay ing c l a i m to the l a n d " . These notions of the c lan system

t e l l us, h o w strong are the seeds of Jagirs in Rajas than. T h e Jagir­d a r i system, as i t has come d o w n to us, has f ou r m a i n a t t r ibutes :

( 1 ) T h e r e is, first of a l l , a recog­nised d i s t inc t ion between ' p roper ty r i g h t s ' and ' C h i e f s r ights ' I n the former , d iv is ion is made accord­i n g t o the H i n d u l a w o f inhe r i t ­ance. T h e la t ter r ights are no t divis ible and must be, regarded as a survival of some f o r m of sove­re ignty , t r i b a l or any o ther ; other­wise, succession is accord ing to the f a m i l y customs and the successor has to p rov ide fo r the necessities of his col lateral relatives.

Secondly, Jagir estates cannot be alienated and t h o u g h mortgages are no t u n c o m m o n , they cannot be foreclosed.

T h i r d l y the rule o f p r imogen i tu re has invar iable app l ica t ion and w h e n there is a fa i lure of na tu ra l heir , adop t ion is p e r m i t t e d w i t h the con­sent of the t e r r i t o r i a l chief.

F o u r t h l y , the assignment system d i d not confer a bundle of r ights of proper ty . By long pres­c r i p t i o n and usage, i t invested the assign w i t h cer ta in p ropr i e t a ry r ights. These r ights , as ind ica ted , must be presumed to be d i s t r ibu ted between the Rule r , the assignee and the actual cu l t iva to r .

T h e r ights o f the Jagirdars in the States of Rajas than and Cen­t r a l I n d i a have not been g iven any s tatutory recogni t ion . T h e y can on ly be infer red and described bu t no t legally defined. T h e concep­t i o n of l and lord i sm is not qui te appropr ia te i n the i r case. I n N o r t h e r n I n d i a , a t any rate, the Br i t i sh d i d no t come up against the essentials of Jagir system leaving aside Inams , Mauf i s and char i table grants. I n Punjab , o n grounds o f p o l i t i c a l expediency, Sir H . L a w ­rence wan ted to m a i n t a i n the Jagir­dars in f u l l possession of the i r grants w i t h the i r privileges secured b u t Lawrence brothers t u r n e d t h e m i n t o peasant propr ie tors .

" T h e system u p o n w h i c h the l and (Jagirs) is d i s t r ibu ted among the branch families and other great heredi ta ry l and holders, is the basis of po l i t i ca l cons t i tu t ion of a R a j p u t state, a n d forms its characterist ic d i s t inc t ion . A n d this system is not , speaking accurately, feudal . T h e tenures of the great c lans-man involves m i l i t a r y service and pay­ments of f inancia l aids' bu t its source is to be f o u n d in the o r i -

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g ina l c lan occupa t ion of the lands, in the privileges of k insh ip and of p u r i t y of descent f r o m the o r i g i n a l occupants or conquerors. T h e subordinate Chiefs real ly c l a im to be conquerors w i t h rulers in the i r r i g h t to domin ions over the soil and the fruits o f i t " (Rajputana Gazette, 1879, V o l . I , pp . 59, 6 0 ) , A c c o r d i n g to this revised v iew, c lan f ra tern i ty , w h i c h was the rementing element between the Rulers and his Ch ie f t a in , was some' t h i n g much stronger than feudal ties.

In more recent times, Jagirs have been given to n o n - R a j p u t families lor services rendered. There are. other tenures grouped under Jagirs such as Inams, Muaf i s , B h u m , Dharmacla , Sasan, ' etc. These tenures h a w come in to existence independent of the clan organisa­t i o n , among them the R a j p u t B h u m i a is famous—because he is famous as the undisputed l o r d of the soil, and holds the l a n d fo r ever on condi t ions of pecul iar ser­vices for specified purposes.

Table. T on page 188 gives de­ta i led classification of Jagirs accord­i n g to tenures; i t relates on ly to whole villages. The re are no sta­tistics available of holdings or plots he ld under different tenures.

Besides Jag i rda r i , Z a m i n d a r i tenure is found in the n o n - R a j p u t States of Bhara tpur , D h o l p u r , over a greater par t of A l w a r and the Parganas o f K o t k a s i m and K o t -p u t l i in Ja ipur . T h e difference be­tween the Z a m i n d a r i and J ag i rda r i tenure is of the r ights enjoyed. The fo rmer is dependent on the k ing whi le the lat ter is independ­ent. The Jag i rda r i r ights wvrc granted by the R a j p u t kings long t ime ago, bu t the Z a m i n d a r i r ights were conferred by Sir M i c h a e l O ' D w y e r in 1909, when first regu­lar settlement was carr ied ou t in bo th the Stales. A n d the on ly considerat ion in confe r r ing these r ights was the great l a n d - h o l d i n g tribes, viz. , the M e w a s a n d Jats w h o were c u l t i v a t i n g the l a n d for a long t ime.

Consequently the l and revenue system in A l w a r is p rac t ica l ly the same as in the South Punjab , the vi l lage c o m m u n i t y being, as a ru le , s trong: and cohesive bodies, gener­ally c u l t i v a t i n g most of the land themselves, bound together by the ties of c o m m o n descent, c o m m u ­nity or t r ibe , c l an or clans and st i l l r e t a in ing the p r i n c i p l e of c o m ­m u n i t y interest and j o i n t responsi-bi l i ty. The tenures are e i ther pure

Z a m m d a r i (he ld by a body of owner s ) , Pa t t i da r i ( he ld by shares, ancestral or cus tomary ) , or B h a i -chara (he ld by possession w i t h o u t reference to shares). The status of Z a m i n d a r i has always admi t t ed a subordinate Biswedari r i g h t in the vi l lage c o m m u n i t y and its compo­nent members, where each member or un i t is en t i t l ed to occupy and be protected in the occupa t ion of the l and in his possession so long as he cult ivates it and pays the

State demand . S imi l a r ly in the Kha l sa villages

of Bhara tpur , the superior and f inal ownership is vested in the State, but. the subordinate propr ie ta ry r ight ( H a q M a l i k a n a ) they are en t i t l ed to possess as long as they pay the State demand . In D h o l p u r there is a modi f ied Z a m i n d a r i tenure, on a contract basis w i t h the State a n d they enjoy propr ie ­tary r ights so long they observe those contracts . T h e Venka tachar

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C o m m i t t e r report that there are a number of States where the tenancy rights both in Khalsa and Jagir are the same. So we see that the condit ions in Rajasthan are typ ica l , peculiar and dist inct . Different tenures are found in dif­ferent places, the rights enjoyed arc somewhat similar , but the m a i n tenure is Jagi rdar i . T h e condit ions of survey settlement and records is not satisfactory. Few datas and records are available. T h e beginning has been made for survey and settlement and there is s t i l l much left to be done.

U n d e r these circumstances the Government of I n d i a appointed a Commi t t ee to enquire "into details tor Rajasthan and M a d h y a Bharat under the Cha i rmansh ip of the ex-Chie f Min is te r Mr C. S . Venkata-ehar. The Commit tee suggested and recommended al l possible steps to be taken in abolishing Jagirdar i . But most of the impor tan t recom­mendations are pending and the new minis t ry has int roduced the Jagirdari A b o l i t i o n Bi l l . Accord ing to the Venkatachar Commit tee Report , the d is t r ibut ion of the total area and the village's in Rajasthan between (a) Khalsa and (b) Jagir and the t r ibute paid by Jagirdars are given in Table I t .

Besides, some of the fiscal powers s t i l l enjoyed by the Jagirdars are as fol lows:

Excise, o p i u m and customs com­pensation. In almost a l l the d i v i ­sions, p r inc ipa l Jagirdars are pa id excise, o p i u m and customs compen­sations. Excise compensation is paid in cash and in k i n d also. In Bikancr, some 38,800 bottles of l iquor are given to the Jagirdars on concession rate, and in other units, payment is made in cash. Figures for these compensation roughly come to Rs 3,04,227.

Salt compensation approximate ly comes to Rs 21,907; the figures for l . d a i p u r and Ja ipur Div i s ion are not available.

Mines : Rs 2,877 is given as compensation for mines.

M a p a , or sales tax, is" s t i l l levied in Bikaner, Ja ipur and Jodhpur and Jodhpur Div is ion .

Cat t le , Pound and K o d i compen­sation comes to Rs 21,10/2; Rs 15,358 arc being pa id in Bikaner only.

Hawa la , general and forest com­pensation comes to Rs 7,280 and Rs 4,494 and Rs 2,142 respectively in Jodhpur Div i s ion only.

Pat ta foe, Nazrana and M o h r a n a are be ing charged by Jagirdars.

We have seen the. area under

Jagirs, the amount of t r ibu te they pay to the State as l and revenue, the vil lage under Jagirs and the various privileges and rights enjoy­ed by the Jagirdars in various capa­city and the extra income w h i c h they obta in f rom thei r Jagirs. These rights and privileges are being enjoyed by them for centu­ries. T h o u g h the rulers have ac«-qui red many of their rights, yet the clan organisation has successfully (becked the k ing f rom acqu i r ing a l l the rights of the Jagirdars. W i t h the modernisat ion of State adminis­t ra t ion , when the Ruler 's au tho r i t y becomes more and more centralised, it tended to cu r t a i l the powers of the Jagirdars. A n d we see tha t the Jagirs of M a d h y a Bharat have bevn gradual ly assimilated in many respects to the Khalsa d u r i n g the last lew decades, but as conservat­ism was given a somewhat freer reign in the States of Rajasthan, the Jagirdars there have been resisting u p t i l now the in tegra t ion of their Jagirs w i t h the rest of the State-.

Since Jagi rdar i was an appendage of the ins t i tu t ion of kingship w h i c h is dead and gone, no reasonable per­son can possibly object to its disso­lu t ion . T h e Jagirdars wou ld con­cede themselves, and there is no re­luctance on their part to do so, tha t there can be no difference in the-rights enjoyed by the cul t ivators in Khalsa or Jagir villages. T h e i n t e ­gra t ion between these two has to he brought about for there cannot be two sets of rights for cul t ivators l i v ­ing in the same States. Ne i the r can there be an intermediary between the State and the cu l t iva to r in some parts of the States whi le in others the State deals d i rect ly w i t h the c u l ­t ivator . Hence there is l i t t le chance of or jus t i f icat ion for con t i nu ing the Jag i rdar i system any further. W h a t remains now to be discussed is t he proper method to be adopted by the Rajasthan Government to abolish this system and its repercussions on the economy of the State.

T h e terms of compensation p r o ­vided for in the draf t b i l l do not make any difference, between small and b ig Jagirs. Th i s is against the recommendations of the V e n k a t a ­char Commi t t ee who felt that in de­vis ing a fo rmula fixing the share of the amount w h i c h a Jagi rdar should receive f rom the State, considera­tions of social justice required that the small and the poorer Jagirdars should be dealt w i t h somewhat more l iberal ly than the richer and bigger Jagirdars. In various other S ta te '

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also, e.g. Assam, B iha r and Hyde ra ­bad , the system of compensat ion adopted is e i ther at a graded rate f r o m 3 to 50 times or on a s l id ing scale f r o m 3 to 20 times, the net annua l income v a r y i n g inversely w i t h the size of h o l d i n g .

Secondly, the suggested manner of payment in 14 annua l instalments (15 in the second d ra f t b i l l ) does no t appear to be based on any sound principles as i t w i l l not he lp the dis­possessed Jagirdars in r ehab i l i t a t i ng themselves in some other occupa t ion o r profession. T h e instalments w i l l be meagre and is more l i ke ly to be dissipated in mee t ing cu r ren t ex­penses t h a n invested as cap i ta l , so tha t at the end of 14 or 15 years, this class of people w i l l be reduced to penury and unemploymen t .

A p a r t f r o m the fu ture of the dis­possessed Jagirdars, it is necessary to ensure tha t the former Jagirs are managed more efficiently t h a n the Jagirdars h a d done ; otherwise, ag r i ­c u l t u r a l p r o d u c t i o n as w e l l as re­venue w i l l suffer, thereby c o m p l i ­ca t ing the food s i tua t ion and m a k ­i n g the economic c o n d i t i o n o f the

people even more precarious. I n the absence of such prov is ion , the r e sumpt ion of Jagirs w o u l d mean on ly a transference of power f r o m the small estatedars to a b i g l and ­l o r d in the shape of the State.

Worse s t i l l , no defini te pr inciples have been adopted for dea l ing w i t h the m i n i m u m and m a x i m u m h o l d ­ings. T h e question of f o r m i n g eco­nomic holdings is no t even consider­ed. T h i s is a ma t t e r of the u tmost impor tance in the backward econo­my of Rajas than. I t is a deficit area, where p r o d u c t i o n should be m a x i ­mised by adop t ing a l l possible means, o l d o r new.

F ina l ly , p r i o r i t y mus t be, g iven to areas where the agra r i an s i tua t ion has deter iorated o w i n g to acute ten­sion between Jagirdars and tenants. T h e backward areas should be t ack l ­ed next and made fer t i le , after due survey a n d settlement. T h e r e l i g i ­ous endowments a n d K h u d k a s h t lands should also be considered ac­c o r d i n g to the s i tua t ion t ha t may be f o u n d in dif ferent areas.

I f a l l the measures discussed

above are du ly p r o v i d e d for and the b i l l i s modi f i ed accordingly, then the Jagirdars should not hesitate to support i t because such an amend­ed measure w i l l benefit the economy of Rajasthan and w i t h i n a decade, the Jagirdars w i l l sec the i r estates r icher a n d self-sufficient, and per­haps h a v i n g a surplus to p rov ide the others. I t requires a broader ou t look on the i r p a r t — f o r the bet­te rment of the count ry . T h e y should look to the fu ture a n d not to the p a $ . T h e r e is n o t h i n g about the p / , t o f w h i c h the best among t h e m need be ashamed. W h a t need con­cern t h e m in the fu ture is no t so m u c h the i r o w n r igh t s o r privileges bu t the manner i n w h i c h they should adjust themselves to the fast chang­i n g social and p o l i t i c a l env i ronment . T h e necessary changes can be effect­ed very smoothly u p o n the i r w i l l i n g ­ness to give up the i r privileges in the larger interest of the coun t ry a n d in a sp i r i t of pa t r io t i sm as the Samurais d i d i n Japan, . w i t h the assistance w h i c h the Gove rnmen t may give t h e m in b r i n g i n g about the readjustments.

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