Fateh Karan Charan | |
---|---|
Nationality | Indian |
Occupation(s) | Revolutionary, Poet |
Known for | Leading the Bijolia Peasant Movement |
Fateh Karan Charan was an early 20th-century Indian revolutionary and poet from Rajasthan. He led the Bijolia Peasant Movement in its early stage in the Mewar region of British India. [1]
Bijolia was a jagir in the Mewar State, it had a large population of peasants who were burdened with multiple taxes (86 kinds in total) and resentment grew among them against the feudal lord of the jagir. In 1906, Prithvi Singh, upon becoming the Thakur of Bijolia, raised the taxes to fulfill the 'Talvar-Bandhi' tax he owed to the Maharana of Mewar. Soon a movement began against the increase in taxes and spread to nearby estates. [1]
In 1913, about 15,000 farmers, under the leadership of Fateh Karan Charan, launched a 'No Tax' campaign under which they decided to leave the lands uncultivated and instead farm the rented plots in the neighbouring areas of Bundi, Gwalior and Mewar states. This resulted in untilled lands all across Bijolia and led to a massive decline in the esatate's revenue in addition to food shortage. [1] [2]
Fateh Karan Charan also composed songs against the authorities including the Munsarim, police, advocates of the State and the Thanedar(inspector) denouncing their deeds and raised questions on their character. [3]
Authorities resorted to suppressive measures and the Maharana, upon witnessing the rise of peasantry, sided with the Thakur of Bijolia. Due to his role in the peasant movement, Fateh Karan Charan was stripped of his jagir(feudal-grant) and was exiled from Mewar. [4]
In 1915, Fateh Karan Charan, along with Braham Deo and Sadhu Sitaram Das, met Vijay Singh Pathik(alias Bhoop Singh) at Chittor and decided to continue their movement and launch agitation against the cruelties of the jagirdars. [5]
A jagir, also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar (Zamindar) system. It developed during the Islamic era of the Indian subcontinent, starting in the early 13th century, wherein the powers to govern and collect tax from an estate was granted to an appointee of the state. The tenants were considered to be in the servitude of the jagirdar. There were two forms of jagir, one conditional, the other unconditional. The conditional jagir required the governing family to maintain troops and provide their service to the state when asked. The land grant, called iqta'a, was usually for a holder's lifetime; the land reverted to the state upon the death of the jagirdar.
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Ram Pande was an Indian historian and civil servant.
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