5. Munda Manki Governance System
The Ho tribe is the fourth largest tribe in Jharkhand in terms of population. Their cluster area is Kolhan, Their social and political system has a unique identity. There is a panchayat in Ho village, which resolves village disputes. Serious allegations are brought before the Gram Panchayat Having sexual relations with blood relatives is considered a serious offense. For this, the offender is punished by social exclusion. Witch practice is found here. If there is strong evidence related to a woman being a witch, then in such a situation, the accused woman is severely punished. Food and drink is also strictly isolated by other castes. An offender is cast out of the gotra for this crime, but is included in the caste on the feast organized. Penalties in the form of cash or material are incurred for ordinary offenses, which are used on mass celebrations. Family disputes, village disputes, property matters are also settled by the Panchayat. The head of the village is Munda and his assistant is called 'Dakua Many villages comprise an interstate panchayat, called the Peed; which is headed by "Manki There are usually 5 to 10 villages in a pend. Some peeds have more villages and more than one standard. In the Gram Panchayat, all the heads of the families are involved in the decision making. Munda of all villages participate in the interstate panchayat. The decision of the panchayat is often valid. At the present time, the existence of government panchayats is also seen in the Ho region.
After the fall of Mughal rule, the British declared these areas in the district of Bengal. Singhbhum continued to operate from Lohardaga in present-day Jharkhand state, but could not recover tax from Singhbhum. In 1830-32, there was a Kol cebellion in protest against tax collection and arbitrariness of the British. The Kol tribe is also called the Ho tribe. After the suppression of the rebellion, a settlement was reached between the company and the tribals. The settlement resulted in Wilkinson Rule in 1837 AD Thomas Wilkinson was commissioner at this time. In 1837, Captain Thomas Wilkinson declared the governor as the agent of all the Mundas (village heads) of Kolhan and as the king of their villages, and it was said that all Mankis and Mundas would be hereditary as before. his assistant is called 'Dakua The head of the village is Munda and Many villages called the Peed, which is headed by Manki comprise an inter- state panchayat
After the British subjugated the Singhbhum region, it was announced that the Munda people would collect one rupee tax from their village and deposit twelve ana out of it as tax. Manki will deposit the tax collected from his subordinate Munda people to the government treasury. As before, Manki and Munda were also allowed to keep two or three dakuas as peons with them, to help them in their work. Half the punishment money was paid to the dakuas as their remuneration and half the amount was used for the good of the haatu (gram).
With the success of this Manki-Munda Mahasabha, Captain Wilkinson wrote the penal system, culture traditions and new tax system prevalent in Kolhan. The matter which Munda could not resolve was settled by Manki. Manki also had to monitor his subordinate Munda people. Captain Thomas Wilkinson included a total of 32 provisions and got it approved by the then governor of Bengal and implemented it in the Kolhan region. This legal system came to be known as Wilkinson Rule. Small criminal cases were also included in the Wilkinson Rule. Murder and robbery were kept out of it. Where Munda had a fair knowledge of the justice system and the general public had a strong belief in Munda, Wilkinson's rule was quite successful.
The history of 'Ho' has been glorious. The then British officers have written that the people of Kolhan cannot be won by fighting. Something can happen by way of consent. Only then, through the Wilkinson law, the British made a treaty with them and their self-government system was recognized. "Ho' struggled for his identity. Even today, this region is a vibrant land of tribal self-government.
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