State and Government in Ancient India c14.s1.37

c14.s1.37

The view that the Paura-Jānapada Assembly had the power to present bills to the king for the losses sustained in the kingdom by theft and dacoities is also incorrect.¹ In ancient Indian polity, the state was held responsible for such losses if the stolen property could not be recovered, and Yājñavalkya calls upon the authorities to recompensate the aggrieved citizen (*jānapada*).² That Jānapada here does not refer to the Realm Assembly would become quite clear if we compare the verse in Yājñavalkya to the corresponding verse in Manu, where it is expressly stated that the compensation was to be given to members of all the castes.³ It is thus clear that *Jānapada* in Manu denotes the citizen in general, irrespective of his caste, and not to any Jānapada-Assembly.