Administrative System of the Marathas c19.s3.3

c19.s3.3

But the Panchayet, was not exactly like the modern jury. The modern jury is presided over by a judge, but the Panchayet was not always presided over by a government officer, and when a Panchayet from the disputants' village was chosen (as was generally done), the members were bound to be more or less acquainted with the facts of the case and came to take their judicial seat with more or less bias. Moreover the parties were sometimes allowed to nominate the members of the Panchayet, each party naturally nominating its own advocates.