Fateh Karan Charan was an early 20th-century Indian

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

from

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...

. He led the Bijolia Peasant Movement in its early stage in the

Mewar Mewar or Mewad is a region in the south-central part of Rajasthan state of India. It includes the present-day districts of Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Pratapgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Pirawa Tehsil of Jhalawar District of Rajasthan, Neemuch and Man ...

region of

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

Bijolia Movement

Bijolia Bijoliya is a census town in Bhilwara district in the state of Rajasthan, India and is surrounded by nature and waterfalls and is famous for Tapodaya Teerth Kshetra and Mandakini Temple. Geography Bijoliya Kalan is located at . It has an aver ...

was a jagir in the

Mewar State Kingdom of Mewar, sometimes known as Udaipur State, was ruled by the Sisodia dynasty. It was an independent kingdom in Rajputana region of India. It was established around the 7th century as minor rulers of the Nagada-Ahar region of Udaipur a ...

, it had a large population of

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

s who were burdened with multiple taxes (86 kinds in total) and resentment grew among them against the feudal lord of the

jagir A jagir ( fa, , translit=Jāgir), 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 rule era of the Indian subcontinent, start ...

. 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 Kingdom of Mewar, sometimes known as Udaipur State, was ruled by the Sisodia dynasty. It was an independent kingdom in Rajputana region of India. It was established around the 7th century as minor rulers of the Nagada-Ahar region of Udaipur an ...

. Soon a movement began against the increase in taxes and spread to nearby estates. 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 Bundi is a city in the Hadoti region of Rajasthan state in northwest India and capital of the former princely state of Rajputana agency. District of Bundi is named after the former princely state. Demographics According to the 2011 Indian cens ...

Gwalior Gwalior() is a major city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh; it lies in northern part of Madhya Pradesh and is one of the Counter-magnet cities. Located south of Delhi, the capital city of India, from Agra and from Bhopal, the s ...

and

states. This resulted in untilled lands all across

and led to a massive decline in the esatate's revenue in addition to food shortage.

As a poet

Fateh Karan Charan also composed songs against the authorities including the Munsarim,

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and t ...

, advocates of the State and the Thanedar(inspector) denouncing their deeds and raised questions on their character.

Suppression of the movement

Authorities resorted to suppressive measures and the

Maharana Maharana is a variation on the Indian royal title Rana. Maharana denotes ' king of kings', similar to the word "Maharaja". Ruler title in British India Salute states (all in present India) The gun salutes enjoyed by the states that acceded to ...

, 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

(feudal-grant) and was exiled from

Next phase

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.

References

{{reflist Mewar Indian poets Indian revolutionaries 20th-century Indian poets Indian farmers People from Rajasthan Rajasthani people