mention two main function of the village panchayat in 16 and 17 centuries in India?
Answers
8.Examine the role played by zamindars in Mughal India.
Ans. The zamindars were the people who did not directly participate in the processes of agricultural production, but they enjoyed high status in the society.
(i)The zamindars considered their land as their property (milkiyat). They had control to sell, give and mortage their property.
(ii)They enjoyed many social and economic privileges because of their superior status in society.
(iii)The zamindars belonged to the upper caste which added to their exalted status in society.
(iv)The zamindars rendered certain services (khidmat) for the state. As a result of their service they received and attained higher position in the state.
(v)The zamindars had the right to collect revenue on behalf of the state and also received financial compensation for this work.
(vi)The zamindars had kept strict control over the military resources of the state. They kept a fortress and a well knit armed unit comprising cavalry, artillery and infantry.
(vii)The zamindars also played significant role in developing the agricultural land. They helped in the settlements of farmers by lending them money and agricultural instruments. It resulted in an increase in agricultural produce and the sale and purchase of land by the zamindars. There are also evidences that the zamindars held bazaars. The farmers came to these bazaars to sell their crops.
(viii)If we observe social relation of village of Mughal age as a pyramid then zamindars were at the top. They occupied the highest position in the society.
(ix)No doubt the zamindars exploited the people but their relations with the farmers depended on their mutual togetherness and hereditary part on age. So, they were able to get peasants in case of the revolt against the state.
9.Discuss the ways in which panchayat and village headmen regulated rural society.(or)
Explain the role of Panchayats in the Mughal rural Indian society during 16th-17th centuries.
Ans. Regulation of rural society by panchayats and headmen:
(i)Meaning of panchayat: The village panchayat consisted of an assembly of elders, they represent different castes and communities except the menial class. Usually important were people of the village with hereditary right over their property.
(ii)General composition and function: In the mixed caste village, the panchayat was usually a heterogeneous body. The panchayet represented different castes and communities in the village.
The village panchayat was headed by Muqaddam also known as mandal. He was elected with consensus of the village elders and remained in the office till he enjoyed the confidence of village elders. His function was to prepare village account with the help of patwari.
(i)The main function of panchayat was to ensure that caste boundaries among the various communities inhabiting the village were upheld.
(ii)It had also the authority to levy fines and taxes.
(iii)It can also give punishment like expulsion from the community.
(iv)Each Jati in the village had its own Jati panchayat. Jati Panchayat wielded considerable power in the society. In Rajasthan, the Jati panchayats arbitrated civil disputes between members of the different castes. It also mediated in disputes claims on land, decided whether marriages had been performed according to that castes norm, etc. In most cases, the state respected the decisions taken by the Jati Panchayat.
(v)The panchayats were also regarded as the court of appeal, that would ensure that the state carried out its moral responsibilities.
(vi)For justice petitions were often made to the panchayat collectively by a group of caste or a community protesting against what they considered to be morally illegitimate demands on the part of elites.
(vii)In cases of excessive revenue demands, the panchayat often suggested a compromise. If this failed, the peasants took recourse to more drastic forms of punishment such as deserting the village.