Administrative System of the Marathas c27.s17.1

c27.s17.1

We may also take note of a police rule of undoubted antiquity which was adopted by the Mughal rulers of India. Whenever anything was stolen it was the duty of the police officers of the place to recover the property or compensate the owner for his loss. This compensation was on rare occasions paid out of the state funds but more generally by the Policemen concerned. The Ain-i-Akbari lays down, "He (the kotwal) shall discover thieves and the goods they have stolen or be responsible for the loss." Manucci tells us that loss from robbery was compensated by the state during Shah Jahan's reign.⁵ The same writer, whose statement is based on actual observation, says of the Kotwal, "If any one is robbed within the bounds of his jurisdiction, he is forced to make good what has been taken."⁶ The Faujdars who supervised roads had similar responsibilities. Manucci informs us, "These *faujdars* have to supervise the roads, and should any merchant or traveller be robbed in day light, they are obliged to pay compensation. If robbed at night, it is the traveller's fault for not having halted earlier, and he loses all, without his complaints being heard."⁷ This practice survived in the Central Indian principalities till the middle of the 19th century. The Maratha policy towards such criminal tribes as the Kolis and the Bhils who infested their frontier was also an inheritance from the Muhammadan rulers they had replaced.⁸ 3. Mutilation: