Peasant revolts: Faqir and Sanyasi, Indigo, Faraizi and Wahabi
British land policies left peasants in debt and hunger. They rose in the Faqir and Sanyasi rebellions, the Indigo revolt and the Faraizi no-tax campaign.
How peasants were pushed into revolt
- 1The Permanent Settlement made the zamindar the owner of the land, but his land could be sold if he paid the revenue late.
- 2So zamindars squeezed money out of peasants even when their crops failed.
- 3Peasants borrowed from mahajans (moneylenders) at high interest and could never repay. Many became bonded labourers, people forced to work to pay off a debt.
- 4Land of zamindars who failed to pay was auctioned, often to city buyers who only collected rent and never improved the land.
- 5Peasants turned to cash crops such as indigo, sugarcane, jute, cotton and opium. This is called commercialisation of agriculture. Food output fell, and famines followed.
- 6★Hungry and indebted, the peasants revolted.
★ key step
The main peasant revolts at a glance
| Revolt | Years and area | Leaders | Key facts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Faqir and Sanyasi rebellions | 1770 to 1820s, Bengal | Majnu Shah (Maznoom Shah in your lesson); Bhawani Pathak and Devi Choudhurani, a woman, supported them | Began after British control raised revenue and the famine of 1770 struck. Landless peasants, displaced zamindars, disbanded soldiers and the poor joined the Faqirs and Sanyasis. They raided English factories for goods, cash and arms. The Sanyasis' immediate grievance was British limits on pilgrims visiting holy places. |
| Faraizi movement | 1838 to 1848 (dates in your NIOS lesson), Bengal | Haji Shariatullah and his son Dadu Mian (Dudu Miyan) | The first no-tax campaign against the British. Its volunteers fought the armed men of indigo planters and zamindars, and it united the cultivators of Bengal against illegal demands. Note: Shariatullah founded the Faraizi sect in about 1818, and under Dadu Mian its clashes with zamindars and planters went on into the 1850s, so other books give wider dates. In the exam, write the dates in your lesson. |
| Wahabi movement | 1830s to 1860s; strong in Bengal | Syed Ahmed Barelvi of Rae Bareilly | Religious at first, inspired by Abdul Wahab of Arabia and Shah Waliullah of Delhi. In places it became a struggle of peasants of all faiths against landlords. |
| Indigo rebellion | 1859 to 1862, Bengal | The raiyats (peasants), backed by the press and missionaries | Hindu and Muslim peasants refused to grow indigo and filed cases against the planters. An order of November 1860 said raiyats could not be forced to grow indigo, a victory for the peasants. |
Why indigo growers were angry
- Planters paid them very low prices for indigo.
- Indigo was sown in the same season as food crops, so it took the place of food and paid little.
- Indigo drained the fertility of the soil.
- Peasants depended on traders and middlemen, who often bought their produce cheaply.
- The crop served the needs of the English cloth markets, not of Indian families.
Significance of the peasant revolts
British economic policies broke India's old farming system and made peasants poorer. The peasant revolts were aimed at these policies. They did not try to drive the British out of India. But they made Indians aware of exploitation and showed the need to organise against it. In this way they prepared the ground for later risings and finally for the Revolt of 1857.
Indigo trouble did not end in 1862. In 1917 Gandhi began his first satyagraha in India at Champaran in Bihar, for peasants forced to grow indigo (lesson 8). Today farmers choose their own crops, and schemes such as crop insurance aim to save them from the debt that ruined these peasants.
1 marks: “Which movement is described in your lesson as the first no-tax campaign against the British Government?” The Faraizi movement of Bengal (1838 to 1848).
2 marks: “Name the two leaders of the Faraizi movement. What did the movement do?” Haji Shariatullah (Shariatullah Khan in your lesson) and his son Dadu Mian. It ran the first no-tax campaign against the British, and its volunteers fought indigo planters and zamindars, uniting Bengal's cultivators.
3 marks: “Describe the Faqir and Sanyasi rebellions of Bengal.” Bengal, 1770 to 1820s. Background: higher revenue after 1757 and the famine of 1770. Landless peasants, displaced zamindars, disbanded soldiers and the poor joined the Faqirs (wandering Muslim holy men) and Sanyasis. Leaders: Majnu Shah (Maznoom Shah in your lesson), with Bhawani Pathak and Devi Choudhurani. They raided English factories. Spark for the Sanyasis: limits on pilgrims. Crushed early in the 19th century.
Bengal peasant timeline: 1770 famine brings Faqirs and Sanyasis; 1838 Faraizi says no tax; 1859 indigo growers strike and win in 1860.