The Kol uprising, Kol rebellion, also known in British records as the Kol mutiny was a revolt of the tribal
Kol people
The Kol people referred to tribals of Chotanagpur in Eastern Parts of India. The Mundas, Oraons, Hos and Bhumijs were called Kols by British.
It also refers to some tribe and caste of south-east Uttar Pradesh. They are mostly landless and depen ...
of Chhota Nagpur that took place between 1831 and 1832.
It was due to economic exploitation brought on by the systems of land tenure and administration that had been introduced by the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...
. Tribal people of Chotanagpur including
Mundas
The Munda people are an Austroasiatic speaking ethnic group of India. They predominantly speak the Mundari language as their native language, which belongs to the Munda subgroup of Austroasiatic languages. The Munda are found mainly concent ...
,
Oraons
The Kurukh or Oraon, also spelt Uraon, or Dhangar ( Kurukh: ''Karḵẖ'' and ''Oṛāōn'') are a Dravidian speaking ethnolinguistic group inhabiting Chhotanagpur Plateau and adjoining areas - mainly the Indian states of Jharkhand, West Benga ...
,
Hos and
Bhumijs were called Kols.
They initially plunded and killed Sikh and muslims thikedars who collected taxes by different means. Later they also started to plunders and kill Hindus of nearby villages and burnt their houses.
The insurgency was suppresed by killing of the leaders, their followers and arrest of many leaders by Thomas Wilkinson.
Background
In 18th century,
Nagvanshi king Maninath Shah (1748-1762) consolidated his authority over the estates of
Bundu
Bundu may refer to:
* Bundu (state), a former state in what is now Senegal
* Also known as the place where Aditya Kumar (BE/10023/12) was born and brought up
* Bundu, India, a town in Jharkhand, India
** Bundu block, the larger administrative u ...
,
Silli
Silli is a village in the Silli CD block in the Ranchi Sadar subdivision of the Ranchi district in the Indian state of Jharkhand.
Geography
Location
Silli is located at .
The Subarnarekha River forms the boundary with Purulia district in We ...
, Barwe, Rahe,
Tamar and the chief of these estates were compelled to
acknowledge the Nagvanshi ruler as their Chief. These chief were known as Mankis of these area. During 19th century, some Mankis revolted after being disposed by Nagvanshi and appointment of Thikedars to collect taxes due to fulfill debt of Nagvanshi. These Mankis and their followers attacked the other Mankis of area, looted and burnt down houses of thikedars as well as plundered and destroyed villages of Hindus.
The uprising was a reaction to the appointment of a Political Agent to the Government in South Bihar and recently ceded districts nearby around 1819. This resulted in many people moving into these areas which were the lands of numerous aboriginal tribes. These tribes ruled by Munda-Manki system. With the application of new land laws, the
Kols were exploited by outsiders moving into the area and commercial activities. Another irritation was the taxation on the movement of products such as salt that were formerly freely moved. Corrupt official practices and lawlessness followed. When some Mankis disposed, Mankis and their followers plundered and burnt the houses of the newly settled people as well as nearby villages of hindus in revenge.
Insurgency
Harinath Shahi, the brother of Nagvanshi king
Jagannath Shah Deo granted lands to some Sikh horse traders and Muslim cloth merchant to collect taxes Sonpur Pargana due to debts.
The twelve villages belongs to Singrai Manki and Mohan Manki. Then the Manki disposed and their two sisters seduced by Sikhs and kept as concubine. The twelve villages of Byjunath Manki were given to Hussain Khan and he send the Manki to Police of Govindpur and send to jail in
Sherghati. The thikedars were collecting taxes by different means such as Abwabs, Salami etc. Then Munda of the region convened a meeting and started looting, burning houses, killings of Sikhs and muslims. The houses of Saifullah Khan, Muhammad Ali Naik, Zafar Ali Khan were looted and killed. Then they also started to plundering houses and killings of Hindus of nearby villages.
Then
Oraon and
Ho also joined in the insurgency in at attempt to destroy Sad (Sadan) or Hindus and Diku or foreigners. According to colonel
Edward Tuite Dalton Edward Tuite Dalton CSI (1815 - 1880) was a British soldier and anthropologist. He was posted in Assam, then became commissioner of Chota Nagpur Division. He was posted in Chotanagpur for two decades. Later he became major general of Bengal Lancer ...
, In every Paragana the villages in which Sads (Sadan/Hindus) resided
were destroyed and all Dikus (foreigners) who fell into the
hands of the insurgents were murdered. The Zamindars of Rahe,
Bundu
Bundu may refer to:
* Bundu (state), a former state in what is now Senegal
* Also known as the place where Aditya Kumar (BE/10023/12) was born and brought up
* Bundu, India, a town in Jharkhand, India
** Bundu block, the larger administrative u ...
,
Tamar, and Barwa, though neither Sads nor
Dikus, narrowly escaped with their lives, when those places
were all sacked and destroyed.
Then it spread to other area of
Ranchi district
Ranchi district is the most populous district of Jharkhand state in eastern India. Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand, is the district headquarters. It was established as a district in 1899.
History
Iron slag, potsherds and iron tools have been ...
. They indulged in plunder and killings. They attacked non-tribal of the region, the
Sadan people
Sadan may refer to:
* Sədan, a village and municipality in Azerbaijan
* Sadan, Burma, a village in Kani Township
*Sadan, Iran, a village in Golestan Province, Iran
* Sadan, South Khorasan, a village in South Khorasan Province, Iran
* Sadan people ...
. The situation continue for several months.
They also destroyed Mahamaya temple which was built by
Nagvanshi king
Gajghat Rai and killed the wife and children of the caretaker of temple Barju Ram. He has described the incident in nagpuri peom.
British historiography described the Kol uprising as
banditry
Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, and murder, either as an ...
. In 1831, the Kol tribesmen of
Chhota Nagpur, who were upset over exploitation by agents of the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...
(EIC), rose in revolt against the EIC. The Kols rebels under the leadership of
Budhu Bhagat, Joa Bhagat, Jhindrai Manki, Madara Mahato, Buli Mahato and others. The Kols grew restive over the increasing encroachment on tribal territories by the non-tribals like
Hindus
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
,
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
and
Sikhs. The new non-tribal landlords resorted to forced labour, fines, and often confiscated their cattle. The Kol insurrection started in 1831 when the farm of two Sikh ''thikadar'' (contractors) was plundered and burnt. In 1832, there were clashes between the armed forces and the tribals Kols rebels.
Kharwar
Kharwar is a community found in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and West Bengal.
Etymology
The ''Khar'' grass is totem of the Kharwar. They don't cut or injure it while growing. Kharwar tribe of pres ...
and
Chero
The Chero is a caste found in the states of Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh in India.
History and origin
The community claims to have originally been tribal people. The Chero are essentially one of many tribal communities, such as the Bhar ...
also joined in the uprisings.
Professor Sunil Sen mentions that in a memorable guerilla campaign
Budhu Bhagat and his followers fought with primitive weapons such as
bows and arrows
The bow and arrow is a ranged weapon system consisting of an elastic launching device (bow) and long-shafted projectiles ( arrows). Humans used bows and arrows for hunting and aggression long before recorded history, and the practice was com ...
.
[ Sunil Sen, ''Peasant Movement in India'', pg.7 ] According to British,
Kols people restored in indiscriminately attacking Hindus, Muslim and other foreigner people, plundered and burnt their houses.
Thomas Wilkinson supressed the activity.
He killed many leaders of insurgency and their followers. In 14 February 1932, he killed Bhagat Singh, a munda leader, his seven sons and his 150 followers in village of Sillagaon. Captain Wilkinson encamped in
Tamar. He summoned the chief of Bundu, Tamar who were Munda as well as king of Chotanagpur and dicided to kept away Lakra Kol (Hos) from the region. The
Rautia of the Sundari, Khunti, Torpa and other places conferred title of Baraik to Thomas Wilkinson. Then Wilkinson went to
Porahat
Porahat is a village in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand state in eastern India. Before Indian independence in 1947, it was the capital of a princely state of British India. Porahat Forest Division
Porahat is a village in West Singhbhu ...
and made some Hos friend and succeeded in capturing the leader of the kol insurgency Dasai Manki in 1936. Katey
and Binji Rai captured when they were enjoying dinner party, then they were taken to Kolkata in chain.
Aftermath
After the insurgency, British created division of
South-West Frontier with its headquarter at
Lohardaga
Lohardaga is a town and the district headquarters of Lohardaga district in the Indian state of Jharkhand, west of Ranchi, the state capital. Earlier (early 1900s) Lohardaga was the commissionary headquarters for Chotanagpur. It was only lat ...
which was later shifted to Kishunpur now
Ranchi and established police station in different areas.
According to British report, the insurgency was result of disposition of some Mankis and their mistreatment at the hands of thikedars as well as the different rents imposition by Company on masses of whom majority were poor with half savage mentality.
See also
*
Santhal rebellion
The Santhal rebellion (also known as the Sonthal rebellion or the Santhal Hool), was a rebellion in present-day Jharkhand and
West Bengal , Eastern India against both the British East India Company (BEIC) and zamindari system by the Santhal. I ...
*
Budhu Bhagat
References
{{reflist, 30em
History of Jharkhand
Rebellions in India
Conflicts in 1831
Conflicts in 1832
1831 in British India
1832 in British India
Conflicts in 1833
1833 in British India