Summary

Modern Indian History Class 24

Tribal Grievances (5:02 PM)

The two issues were tribal autonomy and living in the forest.
The grievance was that their agrarian order and life were turned upside down by British rule and outsiders in form of:
British laws.
British land revenue system.
British government officials.
Outsiders in form of zamindars, revenue farmers, merchants, and money lenders.
British businesses due to railroad constructions, mining, and commercial exploitation of the forest, for example, greed for timber.
Christain missionaries for the spread of Christianity.
The primary concern of the British was land revenue extraction, therefore in many cases, zamindars of planes were made landowners of tribal areas.
Forest land was farmed out to revenue farmers.
In some cases, the tribal chief was recognized as the land owner and tribals as tenants, and in some cases tribals as land owners.
Now there was indebtedness to moneylenders due to now land revenue system of the British and oppression on account of high land revenue.
Tribals lost land to outsiders.
The autonomy of tribal chiefs and tribals was hurt because of the application of British law in civil and criminal matters.
British law banned Jhum cultivation/Podu/Slash & Burn cultivation and banned hunting because the British wanted to settle peasant communities for easy land revenue collection and maximize land revenue.
There was the loss of homes for tribals because British forest law categorizes forests into reserves where no access to tribals( protected), where tribals can use forest produce but only for personal consumption and not for sale, and uncategorized that were open to all.
Loss of home due to land acquisition on account of railroad projects.
Tribals were made to force labour on these projects.
Missionaries post-1813 led to religious interference.
Peasant revolts were civil uprisings where leadership was provided by elites like Rajas, nobility, Zamindars, etc.
The INM leaders called the Pre-1857 revolt the prehistory of modern nationalism.
Western-educated middle class supported and benefited from British rule while peasants and tribals defied British rule violently.

Civil uprisings pre-1857 (5:30 PM)

Raja Chait Singh of Banaras revolted because removed due to non-payment of revenue, 1778-81.
Deposed Nawab Wazir Al in Awadh revolted in 1799 with present support.
Bundela chiefs of Bundelkhand revolted with peasant support due to interference by British resident post-subsidiary alliance signed after the 2nd Anglo-Maratha war 1803-05.
Poligars revolted from 1799-1805 due to loss of status due to British rule of law and Ryotwari in madras and high land revenue demand that hurt ryots.
Dewan Velu Thampi of Travancore revolted with peasant support in 1809 due to interference by the British resident post-subsidiary alliance of 1805.

Revolts where peasants took initiative pre-1857 (5:40 PM)

Rangpur rebellion in 1783 in north Bengal against oppression by revenue farmers.
Mysore 1830-31, the revolt by peasants against the Wodyer dynasty and British agents due to high Land revenue.
Religion played important role in following the pleasant revolt.
Sanyasi and Fakir rebellion in Bengal and Bihar from 1760-1850 with a peak in 1800 where 50,000 members fought against the British.
The reasons were high rents, the end of rent-free tenures, and the domination of the domestic trade of Bengals by EIC agents.
Pagalpanthis revolt in east Bengal in 1823-33 due to oppression by zamindars under the permanent settlement.
Titu Mir in 24 Parganas in 1831 due to oppression by zamindars and indigo planters.
Faraizi revolt in the 1830s in Bengal by Dudu Main due to oppression by zamindars and indigo planters.
Mapilla/Moplah revolt in Malabar in 1840s:
They were the Muslim ryots.
It was against the oppression by big landlords that were Janmies who were Hindu.
It took communal colour because of the specific identities of ryots and landlords.

Tribals uprising Pre-1857 (5:50 PM)

Kol uprising 1831-32:
In the Chotanagpur and Singhbubham regions of Bihar and Orissa
The reason was the influx of outsiders.
When the raja of Chotanagpur farmed out lands to merchants and moneylenders.
Khasi uprising 1833:
The reason was Brahmaputra valley and Sylhet road led to the loss of land and influx of outsiders that is British businesses and British officials.
It was led by Tirith Singh.
Santhal rebellion, 1855-56:
By santhals under Sido and Kahnu Murmu.
The reason was the loss of their fatherland in Rajamahal hills(Jharkhand) to outsiders(Dikus).
British gave tribal land to non-Santhal zamindars and moneylenders and there was also railroad construction.
50,000 Santhals died fighting.

Characters of pre-1857 revolts (5:57 PM)

Modern nationalism was missing as were not all-India movements.
No coordination with each other.
No outside leaders.
Lack of proper planning.
Was spontaneous in many cases.
The goal was not democracy.
However, they are called the prehistory of modern nationalism as they were political and had anti-colonial sentiment.
A political movement has an ideology, organization, or program and is public.
Ideology was there as they wanted to bring back the moral order disturbed by British rule.
Therefore anti-colonial ideology was there.
Political symbolism was there in form of grand marches and an example idea of fatherland/Damien-i-Koh of Santhals.
Religion-based bonds in form of sects provided organization and leaders.
The organization was evident as in many cases they set up their government, collected self-imposed tax, and set up their courts.
Programs were there, large meetings were held and planning was done by Santhals.
Peasants and tribals knew their oppressors and tools of oppression, they did not attack the life of oppressors in many cases but their property, and account books of money lenders.
Santhals declared that traditionally they have hunted animals and now they hunt their oppressors.
Crimes were done secretly while political action was public and their revolt was public, for example, Santhals gave a prior warning to the British in 1855 before revolting.

Tribal revolt Post-1857 (6:48 PM)

Munda/Ulgulan revolt,1899-1900:
In chotanagpur ledby Birsa munda.
The reason was the loss of land to outsiders and missionary activities by Christian missionaries.
The action was people came to believe in the supernatural power of Birsa, therefore religion, in this case, gave them the courage to rise against the mighty British.
Religion also provided narrative as Brisa compared British rule with Kalyuga and similar to the rule of Ravana's wife Mandodiri.
Political symbolism was present as Munda's revolted on Christmas of 1899.
Rampa/Fituri Rebellion,1879:
In Rama Hills of Andra Pradesh.
The reasons were:
Commercial exploitation of forests.
Road construction led to the loss of land.
Loss of land to merchants and moneylenders.
Restrictions on the use of forest resources.
Prohibitions on Podu.
Tax on Toddy.
Fituri was led by Muttdaras who were local estate holders/land owners.
It was crushed by 1880 and in 1920-22 NCM tribals did the violation of forest laws and then Alluri Sitarama Raju who had led the Gandhian struggle revolted violently as he believed that India can be liberated only by force.
Therefore now continued the tradition of Fituri and he was executed in 1924.

Early Indian National movement/post-1857 peasant movements and revolts (7:03 PM)

New features emerged in the peasant moment of post-1857.
Peasants showed greater awareness of British laws and institutions and organized themself politically.
Now middle class began taking up leadership of peasants, therefore, beginning of early INM.
Indigo revolt, 1859-63 in Bengal:
Background:
In 1788, EIC began indigo plantations by giving loans to 10 European planters in Bengal.
European planters leased land from Zamindars(forced by EIC).
The Indigo system of cultivation was the Nij cultivation of Bengal.
Planters bought or hired land and hired labour for the cultivation of indigo had to buy large lands and mobilize labour and bullocks which was a challenge.
In the Ryoti system, Bengal leased large land from Zamindars, and planters signed contracts with tenant ryot where ryot must grow indigo on at least 25% of occupied land.
Planters gave advances and loans on low-interest rates to ryot and gave indigo and seed drills.
The Tinkathia system in Bihar was the same as the Ryoti system but here forced to grow indigo on 15% or 3/20 of occupied land.
In pre-1857 revolts aginst indigo planters were Titu Mir in 24 parganas and Faraizi revolt under Dudu Mian in east bengal.
Fertility of soil destroyed by Indio cultivation.
The revolt began due to a fall in international prices of indigo and forced cultivation and perpetual indebtedness to planters.
The trigger was emphatic LG of Bengal who asked DCs to take the side of ryots.
Ryots refused advances and refused to cultivate indigo and did a social boycott of agents of indigo planters.
Zamindars support ryots as against the domination of the rural economy by indigo planters.
Use of British courts as planters went to court to enforce contracts of indigo cultivation.
Now ryots began the no-rent campaign and planters tried to evict ryots.
Now ryots went to court to enforce their occupancy right under the rent act 1859.
Role of educated middle-class and Christain missionaries:
Dinbandhu Mitra wrote the play, Neel Darpan, in 1860, which showed the oppression of ryots and therefore increased awareness.
Bengali poet Micheal Madhusudan Dutta translated the play into English and Christian missionary James Long published it leading to awareness in England.
Indain press began campahin by writing editorials.
British Indian Association 1851, an organization of landlords supported ryots, resulted in the Indigo commission 1860.
It asked Ryot to fulfil present contracts but was free to not sign contracts in the future.
Therefore by 1863 Indigo cultivation sifted from Bengal to Bihar in form of the Tinkathia system.
Pabna Agrarian league, 1873:
There Grievance was high land and illegal Abwabs, and Zamindars not respecting occupancy rights under the rent act 1859.
The action was peasants organized themself into leagues and pooled money to fight in courts, Naya Mian replicated the movements in other districts.
The result was the Bengal tenancy act which gave more protection to tenants regarding occupancy rights.
The educated middle class got divided as it was not foreigners who were under attack but Indian Zamindars.
Deccan riots 1875, Maharashtra:
During the US civil war, there was an increase in cotton prices but later the price fell.
The Grievance was that oppression by Moneylenders via high-interest rates on loans, loss of lands due to indebtedness, high land revenue in Ryotwari, and loss of land in a government auction.
The action was Poona Sarvajanik Sabha 1870 of middle class collected 17,000 signatures on the power of attorney to represent ryot in front of the British government.
Therefore government agreed that confiscation of land on non-payment of land would be the last resort of the government for recovering land revenue.
However, moneylenders now refused loans therefore ryots were unable to pay land revenue and a violent revolt began in 1875.
Life of moneylenders was not attacked but only debt bonds were burned, therefore ryot was aware of the tool of oppression.
The result was the Deccan agriculturist relief act, of 1879, which regulated interest rates and gave protection against the loss of lands due to indebtedness.

The topic of the next class: Pre-INC organizations.