A History of the Mahrattas v2.c49.36

v2.c49.36

Events were in the meantime occurring at Poona which require notice, as some of them were a good deal influenced by news from the northward. Bajee Rao, on Sindia’s departure, instead of endeavouring to conciliate parties, evinced a malignant spirit of revenge towards all the great families whom he suspected of ever having been the political opponents of himself or his father. To distress and pillage all such of them as fell into his power, was, from first to last, a favourite object of his policy. The respectable family of Rastia was among the earliest who experienced his malevolence. Mahdoo Rao Rastia was invited on a friendly visit to the Peishwa’s palace, seized, and hurried off as a prisoner to Raigurh. The unpopularity of this deed was proportionate to its treachery and injustice; many instances, though of a less conspicuous nature, occurred; the minds of his subjects were alienated, and distrust and disaffection towards Bajee Rao’s power and government became almost universal. Anarchy was spreading in the country. Bodies of insurgent horse were plundering in various directions. One party under Bal Kishen Gungadhur was defeated by Gunput Rao Phansay; and Wittoojee Holkar, the brother of Jeswunt Rao, who was concerned with him and taken prisoner, was barbarously and ignominiously executed at Poona. That the Peishwa had a right to inflict the punishment of death, on subjects so taken in arms, cannot be doubted, but insurrection and plundering are not rigidly viewed among Mahrattas, and in public opinion a more lenient sentence than loss of life ought to have been passed upon the son of Tookajee Holkar; that circumstance, however, operated differently on the mind of the Peishwa, who could not forget that he was the son of the friend of Nana Furnuwees. Having seated himself with his favourite, Ballajee Koonjur, at a window which overlooked the exterior court of his palace, Wittoojee Holkar was brought before the Peishwa and there tied to the foot of an elephant; in vain did he offer up the humblest supplications for life and mercy; the execution went forward; Bajee Rao sat a composed spectator and heard the yells of the unhappy malefactor as the animal dragged him forth from the palace yard to a lingering death, as in his case it happened to be, in the public street.¹