Political History of Ancient India, from the Accession of Parikshit to the Extinction of the Gupta Dynasty c21.s1.40

c21.s1.40

¹ In the *Mṛichchhakaṭika* (Act IX), which may be a composition of the period between Bāṇa (who knew a king Sūdraka, but no poet of the same name) and Vāmana (8th century) the judge (*adhikaraṇika*) in a court of law is accompanied by a *Sreshṭhin* and a *Kāyastha*. Reference is also made to the *Adhikaraṇa-Bhojakas* and a *Mahattaraka* in connection with the arrangement of benches in the *Vyāvahāra-maṇḍapa* (the hall of justice) and the detection of people "wanted" by the city Police (*nagara-raksh-ādhikṛita*.) The *Mudrārākshasa* of Viśākhadatta which is probably to be assigned to a period anterior to Rājaśekhara, the Daśarūpaka and Bhoja, perhaps also to Vāmana but not to Avantivarma (of the Maukhari or Utpala dynasty) or Dantivarman (Rāshṭrakūṭa or Pallava) whose name or names occur in the *Bharata Vākya*, makes mention of Kāyastha, *Daṇḍapāśika*, etc. Village functionaries were ordinarily placed under officials of the *Vishaya* or district. But in exceptional cases they had direct dealings with the *Uparika* or governor of a *Bhukti* (Ep. Ind., XV, 136).