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'Baroda Enquiry Commission Report, 1874' [88r] (180/502)
The record is made up of 1 volume (249 folios). It was created in 1 Nov 1873-14 Feb 1874. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .
Transcription
This transcription is created automatically. It may contain errors.
a^
SCHEDULE No. I—
Complaints of British subjects.
Remarks.
the proceedings recorded by Bulwantrao Yeshwant, Fouzdar,
that Maniklall Vithul was convicted of writing in Baroda a
defamatory letter addressed to his brother Nanjee Vittml in
Ahmedabad, and was sentenced to one year's rigorous im
prisonment. The date of this sentence purports to be June 6th ?
1873. The trial of Maniklall Vifchul for the alleged offence
took place in the month of April 1878; and Maniklall Vithul
was actually imprisoned in that month, i.e., about a month and
a half before any sentence was recorded. Maniklall Vithul
swears that the charge of writing to his brother Nanjee a
defamatory letter is absolutely without any foundation.
Nanjee himself swears that he received no such letter in Ah
medabad, and states that on prof erring himself for examina
tion on hehalf of his hrother, his evidence was rejected hy the
Fouzdav. Maniklall further swears that the statement in
the case purporting to have been made by him and to have
been signed with his own hand, was never made.by him at
all, and that the signature in question is a forgery. He fur
ther swears that no evidence was recorded in his presence,
and that no questions were asked him relating to the charge
against him. Maniklall was told by Bulwantrao Yeshwant
himself four days after he had been taken off to jail that his
sentence was 14 years' imprisonment; the same imformation
was given by the Fouzdar to Maniklall s mother, Jurao, who
visited the Fouzdar at his own house. The sentence recorded
in the proceedings is one year only. There are circumstances
connected with this case as well as collateral evidence which,
it is right to state, are in favour of the probable truth of the
statement put forth by Maniklall that the charge is a false
one got up against him by the complainant, TJmr atlaJ_,
owing to a quarrel between them, and that he never made
the confession attributed to him.
In the first place the evidence taken at Ahmedabad regarding
Maniklall's claims to be a British subject appears to establish
that fact, and if the
Durbar
A public or private audience held by a high-ranking British colonial representative (e.g. Viceroy, Governor-General, or member of the British royal family).
had no doubt of Maniklall being
a Baroda and not a British subject, and that as such he had
made a full confession of his^ guilt on the 11th April 18/3.,
why should they, contrary to ordinary custom, have gone to
J •fvrmnio nt hnn(T_
1. In tlie flogging case {Vide No. 39 of
Schedule II.) four tnen were con
demned to imprisonment for life on
their alleged confession ; three did
not confess, but were imprisoned.
2. In the Patton torture ease (Nos. 9 and
10 of Schedule II.) men were flogged
to make them confess.
3. The Amba Tanee case (No. 33 of Sche
dule II.) also affords valuable evi
dence on these points. Vide the.
statements of Amba Kashee, Bul
wantrao Sagurkur, and lihagwanta
Gurud.
the trouble of bring
ing nine witnesses from
Ahmedabad to prove
what they state they
were already con
vinced of.
The cases margin
ally quoted, as well as
others that might be
cited, show that men
are condemned even
to imprisonment for
life on their own con-
fessions, and also that torture by flogging, &c ; , is resorted to,
to extort such confessions in Gaekwar territory; also that
confessions never uttered are recorded against accused per
sons; consequently that there was no necessity, according to
ordinary Gaekwar procedure, to send for these nine witnesses
to Ahmedabad; and that these witnesses allege that a crime
has been committed in Ahmedabad by Maniklall sbiother,
Nanjee. Seven out of the nine are goldsmiths ; the other
two are one a Brahmin, the other a Koonbee.
About this item
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Report of the Baroda Enquiry Commission on the administration of the government of Malharrao, Gaekwar of Baroda. The Commission comprised Richard John Meade (President), Edward William Ravenscroft, Mumtazul Dowlah Nawab An honorific title; an official acting as a provincial deputy ruler in South Asia; or a significant Muslim landowner in nineteenth century India. Faiz Ali Khan, Colonel Alfred Thomas Etheridge and Thomas Duncan Mackenzie (Secretary).
The report comprises a letter from the members of the Baroda Enquiry Commission to the Secretary to the Government of India, Foreign Department presenting their report on the results of the proceedings and submitting copies of correspondence, reports and statements relative to the enquiry (ff 5-19):
Appendix A, Part I
- Schedules I-III: Complaints and grievances against the Gaekwar's Government from individuals and groups (ff 21-78).
- Appendix B, Schedules I-III: Cases of complaint and grievance which the commission did not look into during the enquiry (ff 79-81).
- Appendix C: Letter from Colonel Richard John Meade, President, Special Commission of Enquiry on Baroda Affairs, to Colonel Robert Phayre, Resident at Baroda, 1 November 1873 (ff 82-83).
- Appendix D: Translation of an amended notice issued by the Resident to complainants desirous of appearing before the Baroda Enquiry Commission (ff 84-85).
- Appendix E: Schedules presented to the Commission along with Colonel Phayre's introductory statement regarding them. (ff 86-131).
- Appendix F: Letter No. 1128 of 1873 from Colonel Phayre to the President, Baroda Commission regarding the cases already submitted to the Commission, the List of undisposed petitions to be attended to by the Resident which could be used as additional cases if required and the statements that he had yet to make on cases under enquiry by the Commission (ff 132-133).
- Appendix G, Schedule I: Statements from witnesses with cross examination statements from the Durbar A public or private audience held by a high-ranking British colonial representative (e.g. Viceroy, Governor-General, or member of the British royal family). on behalf of the Gaekwar and statements from the Resident as to the accuracy of the information provided (ff 134-229).
Appendix Part II (ff 231-245)
- Letter from James Braithwaite Peile, Acting Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Kattywar [Kathiawar] to T D Mackenzie, Secretary, Baroda Commission, 13 December 1873 regarding papers requested by the Commission and informing them that the outstanding paper will be forwarded as soon as they are received. Enclosed with the letter are a memorandum from Peile for reconstitution of His Highness the Gaekwar's Contingent in Kattywar, 13 December 1873 and Rule for the guidance of the Officers and Kamdars appointed to the Contingent of Horse of His Highness the Gaekwar, serving in the various Tributary Mahals according to treaty.
- Letter from Peile to Mackenzie, 6 January 1874, forwarding a report and returns received from Colonel Walker, Superintendent to the Gaekwar's Contingent in Kattywar and stating that he does not concur with the Colonel's opinion. Enclosed with this letter is a letter from Colonel Chamberlen William Walker, 30 December 1873, providing the information on the Contingent requested by the Commission and enclosing an extract of the Contingents annual report for 1871 and a statement of the men within the Contingent on duty under officials paid by Talukdars etc, 06 March 1872.
- Letters from John Whaley Watson, Acting Political Superintendent Pahlanpur [Palanpur], Captain Henry Nicholas Reeves, Acting Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. Rewa Kanta [Rewa Kantha] and Major Philip Harrison Le Geyt, Acting Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. , Mahi Kanta [Mahi Kantha] to the secretary of the Baroda Commission 19 December 1873 to 9 January 1874 reporting on the Gaekwar's contingents serving within their districts and commenting on numbers of men, pay and conditions. The letters all refer to enclosed returns, but only the return for Mahi Kanta is included in the report.
- Extent and format
- 1 volume (249 folios)
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the main sequence of foliation consists of a small pencil number in the top front right hand corner of each folio enclosed in a circle.
There is also an original sequence of foliation which consists of larger pencil numbers also in the top front right hand corner of folios, however the sequence is not consistent and some of the numbers may be filing references rather than foliation numbers.
- Written in
- English in Latin script View the complete information for this record
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- Reference
- Mss Eur F126/78
- Title
- 'Baroda Enquiry Commission Report, 1874'
- Pages
- front, back, spine, edge, head, tail, front-i, 2r:248v, back-i
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence