Social and Political Life in the Vijayanagara Empire (A.D. 1346 – A.D. 1646) v1.c12.s2.t2.24

v1.c12.s2.t2.24

This supposition is based on an inscription dated A.D. 1346 which informs us that Harihara Oḍeyar and Bukkaṇṇa Oḍeyar granted to Vaiyaṇṇan Kōmuppaṇ, the Superintendent over the Tēkkal-nāḍu, Mādaraisanpalli belonging to the same nāḍu, as a kuḍaṅgai exempt from taxes. The grant further relates that he was to grow any crop he pleased on all the dry and wet lands of the village, excluding former gifts, and that he was entitled to receive all the villages (specified) in perpetuity.¹ From this it appears that the rulers permitted an official to grow any crop on all the dry and wet lands of a village. But we have already seen that village assemblies, even in later times, were zealous about their ancient rights, especially those relating to land. The instance in queston seems to be a violation of those privileges which the villages had enjoyed since the earliest times, and especially of the claims put forward by the rulers of Vijayanagara as champions of ancient custom. It may be that the clause relating to former gifts made sufficient provision for the rights of the village of Mādarai-sanpalli; or it may as well be that this grant is an instance of a flagrant breach of the respect which the members of the new family usually showed for the constitutional usage of the land. A third assumption is that there was perhaps a rule that the superintendent had the right to grow a crop on a certain area of village land chosen by him, besides taking the *mēlvāram*.² These are, however, only suppositions for the present. The existence of the superintendent over the *nāḍu* is further proved by an inscription dated A.D. 1379 which mentions the *Mahāsāvantādhipati* Soṇṇaiya Nāyakar's son Aṅkaya Nāyaka, the Superintendent over the Noṇḍaṅguli-nāḍu (*nāṭṭu-nāyakkarum*).³ Then, again, we have the Sēnabōva Mādisīyar Kambayar, the Superintendent over the Erumai-nāḍu (*sānapōvan-Erumai-nāṭṭu-nāyagañ-jeyvār*) in about A.D. 1380.⁴