Dacoity
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Dacoity is a term used for "
Etymology
The word "dacoity", the
The term dacoit (
, who plunder in armed bands").History
Bandits of Bhind-Morena and Chambal
The dacoity have had a large impact in the
In Chambal, India, organized crime controlled much of the countryside from the time of the
Dacoits in Bengal
While thugs and dacoits operating in northern and central India are more popularly known and referenced in books, films and academic journal, a significant number of accounts also come from Bengal. Writing about the dacoits of Bengal, the colonial official CH Keighly mentions the “great difference between gangs of hereditary dacoits or thugs in other parts of India and the dacoits of Bengal”.[3] It is notable that unlike the rest of India, dacoits in Bengal did not come from a particular social class, caste, or creed.
The Gangs of Nadia and Hooghly
Dacoit gangs in Nadia and Hooghly were particularly known for their ritualistic practices before the night of dacoity. Before setting off for their mission, the members would assemble to perform “kalipuja” led by the Sirdar (leader). The dacoits would form a straight line and a pot of liquor, torches, and weapons to be used in the dacoity were laid down in a clear space. The Sirdar would then dip his finger in oil and touch the forehead of all the dacoits, making them promise never to confess. Even during the raid, when dacoits opened chests and discovered a good fortune, they would shout “Kali, Jai Kali”.[3]
Dacoits of Birbhum
Dacoity was highly prevalent in 19th century west Bengal. One of the gangs, led by a charismatic leader named Bhabani Pathak, was known for its loyalty to their leader. After the British captured Bhabani, the inner workings and social factors that led to the construction of this gang were revealed. Leaders such as Bhabani were known as Sirdars and had a symbiotic relationship with their followers.[3] Among other benefits, a Sirdar would lend loans to members and provided them protection. This allowed for the formation of a special bond between the Sirdar and followers which meant that cases of desertion and exiting the gang were virtually unheard of.
Tales of Burdwan
In Burdwan, dacoities were heavily planned and considerable thought went into their seamless execution. Sirdars in Burdwan operated by employing several informants who kept them updated about prospective targets.[3] When a target was finalized, the Sirdar and relevant gang members were constantly made aware about his whereabouts. The informants were always on the lookout for wealthy businessmen and kept a close watch on those that exchanged bank notes of considerable value or received a shipment of merchandise that they would store in their houses.
Other dacoity
The term is also applied, according to the
Dacoits existed in Burma as well –
Indian police forces use "Known Dacoit" (K.D.) as a label to classify criminals.
Thuggee and Dacoity Suppression Act
Introduced in 1836, the suppression acts brought about several legislative measures including the establishment of special courts, authorization for the use of rewards for informants, and the power to arrest suspects.[4] The suppression acts marked the beginning of active British intervention in policing and law enforcement in Indian society. These acts were known to be authoritarian and further deepened the uneven power dynamic between the British and the Indians.
British Portrayal of Crime in India
The British often saw Indians as primitive, violent, and unruly, and this often acted as a justification for colonization and further consolidated their “civilization mission” pretext. The practice of thuggee and dacoity was seen in a similar Eurocentric light, without understanding the local context. An orientalist view of such activities was portrayed in the rest of the world to account for several repressive legislative measures that the British took. Under this punitive approach, several innocent individuals fell prey to false suspicion and were incriminated.[5]
Notable dacoits
Notable dacoits include:
- Chavviram Singh Yadav[6]
- Gabbar Singh Gujjar - inspired the famous 1975 film Sholay, based on his life[7]
- Man Singh[8] was a notorious Dacoit of the Rathore clan of Rajputs. He was also known as the Lion of Chambal.
- Malkhan Singh Rajpoot, a notorious bandit known as the Bandit King or King of Dacoits.[9] He also had political aspirations in MP.
- Malangi
- Kallu Yadav (Kalua), also known as Katri King[10]
- Mohar Singh Gurjar
- Nirbhay Singh Gujjar
- Nizam Lohar, a dacoit born into a Punjabi Muslim family during the Sikh Empire. He is known for his rebellion and freedom struggle against the British colonial government.
- Paan Singh Tomar, a former soldier in the Indian Army, an athlete that represented India in the Asian Games, who later resorted to becoming a Baaghi due to the injustices he faced. Also inspired the famous Bollywood film Paan Singh Tomar played by Irrfan Khan.
- Phoolan Devi,[11] known as Bandit Queen (even a movie with the same name was made), a lady bandit who initially rebelled against her rape and injustice her community she was subjected to.
- Rambabu Gadariya - Regarded as the last notorious dacoit of Chambal[12]
- Shiv Kumar Patel (Dadua)
- Ramashish Koeri was active in Rohtas Plateau of Bihar in 1980s. He was the leader of a group of bandits, who were supported by the people from lower strata of society. This dacoit group was known for challenging the hagemony of upper caste landlords in the region, who were exploitative.[13]
- Jagat Singh Sidhu (Jagga Jatt)
- Koose Munusamy Veerappan, a notorious dacoit, poacher, and smuggler in South India.He was responsible for poaching approximately 500 of the 2000 elephants killed in the peninsular region where he was active[14] and for smuggling ivory worth US$2.6 million (₹16 crore)[14] and about 65 tons of sandalwood[15] worth approximately US$22 million (₹143 crore).[16]
Protection measures
In Madhya Pradesh, women belonging to a village defence group have been issued firearm permits to fend off dacoity. The Chief minister of the state, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, recognised the role the women had played in defending their villages without guns. He stated that he wanted to enable these women to better defend both themselves and their villages, and issued the gun permits to advance this goal.[17]
In popular culture
Dacoit films
As the dacoits flourished through the 1940s–1970s, they were the subject of various
Pakistani actor
The most famous dacoit film is Sholay (1975), written by Salim–Javed, and starring Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, and Amjad Khan as the dacoit character Gabbar Singh. It was a masala film that combined the dacoit film conventions of Mother India and Gunga Jumna with that of Spaghetti Westerns, spawning the "Dacoit Western" genre,[19] also known as the "Curry Western" genre. The film also borrowed elements from Akira Kurosawa's Seven Samurai.[21] Sholay became a classic in the genre, and its success led to a surge of films in this genre, including Ganga Ki Saugandh (1978), once again starring Amitabh Bachchan and Amjad Khan.
An internationally acclaimed example of the genre is Bandit Queen (1994).
The Tamil movie starring Karthi, Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru (2017) deals elaborately with bandits. The film reveals the real dacoity incidents which held in Tamil Nadu between 1995 and 2005. Director Vinoth did a two-year research about bandits to develop the script.
A related genre of crime films are
Other media
Bengali novel Devi Chowdhurani by author Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in 1867.
Bengali poem Birpurush by Rabindranath Tagore in 1903.
A Hindi novel named Painstth Lakh ki Dacoity (1977) was written by Surender Mohan Pathak; it was translated as The 65 Lakh Heist.
Dacoits armed with pistols and swords appear in
They frequently appeared in the French language Bob Morane series of novels by Henri Vernes, principally as the main thugs or assassins of the hero's recurring villain, Mr. Ming and in English as the agents of Sax Rohmer’s Fu Manchu.
See also
References
- ^ Here, "Anglo-Indian" refers to the language, or linguistic usage. See: Yule, Henry and Burnell, Arthur Coke (1886; reprinted 1903). Hobson-Jobson: A Glossary of Colloquial Anglo-Indian Words and Phrases, and of Kindred Terms, Etymological, Historical, Geographical and Discursive. London: J. Murry. p. 290. Archived 2014-06-28 at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ a b c d e Paul Salopek (6 February 2019). "Trekking India's wild north, where bandits ruled". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 9 February 2019. Retrieved 7 February 2019.
- ^ JSTOR 40276503– via JSTOR.
- S2CID 145536132.
- JSTOR 23638761.
- ^ Raina, Asoka (31 March 1982). "UP's most wanted dacoit Chhabiram killed after seven-and-a-half hour battle". India Today. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
- ^ "Sholay: Iconic Bollywood film releases in Pakistan cinemas - BBC News". Archived from the original on 5 August 2018. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- ^ Staff (5 September 1955) "India: Dead Man" Archived 2010-11-30 at the Wayback Machine Time magazine
- ISSN0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-10-27.
- ^ "Dreaded dacoit Kalua shot dead". Hindustan Times. 17 January 2006. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
- ISBN 978-1-59228-641-6.
- ^ "The 'Last Lion of Chambal' gunned down by police". www.southasianpost.com. 20 September 2005. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011.
- ^ Farzand Ahmed (ed.). "183 people brutally murdered in Kaimur plateau in Bihar in last 12 months". India Today. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
- ^ a b SHARMA, RAVI (18 November 2004). "How he made his pile". Frontline.
- ^ "The most famous of them all". www.downtoearth.org.in.
- ISBN 9788125026389.
- ^ "Indian Women Granted Gun Permits to Fend Off Armed Robbers" Archived 2008-11-23 at the Wayback Machine LearnAboutGuns.com
- ^ Salopek, Paul (6 February 2019). "Outlaw Trails". National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on 14 February 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
They have grown up on news accounts and Bollywood movies about the remote Chambal, a vast badland at the northern heart of their country: a no-go zone of lumpy hills and silty rivers infested with thugs, robbers, murderers, gangsters—with infamous highwaymen called dacoits.
- ^ ISBN 9781317592266. Archivedfrom the original on 30 November 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
- ^ "The Real Life Hero". Screen. 6 June 2008. Archived from the original on 3 March 2010. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
- ^ Pandya, Haresh (27 December 2007). "G. P. Sippy, Indian Filmmaker Whose Sholay Was a Bollywood Hit, Dies at 93". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 28 August 2011. Retrieved 23 February 2011.
Further reading
- Phoolan Devi, with Marie-Therese Cuny, and Paul Rambali, The Bandit Queen of India: An Indian Woman's Amazing Journey from Peasant to International Legend Guilford, CT: The Lyons Press, 2006 ISBN 978-1-59228-641-6
- Mala Sen, India's Bandit Queen: The true Story of Phoolan Devi, HarperCollins Publishers (September 1991) ISBN 978-0-00-272066-3.
- G. K. Betham, The Story of a Dacoity, and the Lolapaur Week: An Up-Country Sketch. BiblioBazaar, 2008. ISBN 0-559-47369-9.
- Shyam Sunder Katare, Patterns of dacoity in India: a case study of Madhya Pradesh. S. Chand, 1972.
- Mohammad Zahir Khan, Dacoity in Chambal Valley. National, 1981.
External links
- Dacoity - Indian Penal Code, Chapter XVII (Mobile Friendly)
- As modern world closes in, India's fabled bandits are disappearing Archived 26 September 2022 at the Wayback Machine - International Herald Tribune