Chapter - VI
------------
ALLURI SITARAMA RAJU AND THE
MANY AM REBELLION OF 1922-24.
41.4
50 25 0 25
N I Z A M 'S
DOMINION
LEGEND
Rivers
Hilly areas
Cartography by : Niladri Dash, csrdjsss , Jnu.
4:1.6
'1'he pattern of tribal protests againot foreot grievanc.'E!S in Madras
Pmsichncy during the 1920's c:xmsisted of two stremns ,_.,..ieh hru3 a
~ goal but had differenc:e:l in p:>litical ideology end font!3 of
struggle. During 1920-22, all fort.'l3 of protest around for<!!lt
grievllOOeS operated tti thin tho fr~rk of conqrcso-led t-..'on
cooperation. During 1922-24, the form of protest t.oo.'t the shape of a
full ccale l'::.lr against colonial police and army. To understand the
dyntl'llics of revolt at the latter 14vol, which is the th~ of this
chapter, wa shall first go into tha specific griwancoa of tribal
con:munities in the colonial oontext in the Rampa region tttich h'hich 1
conditioned the 1922-24 rebellion against British rule in tho hillo.
In the first section of the chapter wa will trace the historical roots
of the different forest qri~~onces under British rulo ~ith a epecinl
emphasis on the mterial factors t::hich conditioned tht!m and tho
consequent hostility of the (pressure fran bal.CM) moses against tho
popularly ~ived "jubberdunt" 'white' rule in the hills. Wa have
also tried to underline the natura of the perception of popular
grievances, the typa of initiative and the level of integration of
tribal msses fran below into the tt.anyam rebellion, ro that the
popular socicll base of the anti-British revolt at the 9X'ass root
level can be highlighted. At t."te sscond lEWel wa restrict
our enquiry to the study of social char&Cter nnd
1. Throughout t.he text the 'WOrd "Rmpa" is bainq used whenever t"a
are d..""Scribing the geography, econany and other relllted oopect:.s of the regionr wen describing thQ rebellion \':3 use the local Mm3 "Kanyam11 and for its lea.cbr the popularly known name •sitarama Rajua inatood of "R.a"IM Rnju" given in the Goverrumnt records. The 't«lrd "rebellion• for •fituri" is preferred ao that its character ~ld bs indicated without any smbiguity.
4 t 7 /
political ideology of the rebellion. At this stage en attenpt
would be made to dem::mstrate the level of integration of the
masses into Alluri Sitarama Raju•s anti-colonial rebtllion. This
would, hopefully, help us to bring cut the unfoldinq initiatives
by the tribal nesses - this is ttlat we cell the 1.10Vel130t from
below - in the light of the structural realities which
necessitated popular mass participation in the two years•
911errilla l-!Br.
Forest Grievances in the Region under British Rule
Geographically the total forest area in Mndras Presidency was 2
19,607 square miles by 1907. By 1922 the agency division in
Andhra alone Embraced a tot.a area of 19, 287 square miles
canprisinq of what ware formerly the tracts of Ganjam, 3
Vb:agap3.tam and Gcxiavari • This agency division represents nost 4
of the hill tribcl groups even though, ears tribes tNere scattered s
into districts like t<urnool 1 Guntur, Olittoor and Nellore. ----·----............... - & ••• I __ ......_ ... .-.... _ _...,..._ ...... _, _______ _......._...__ __ ,..._...,.,.. ... _...__
2. Annual Administration Report of the Forest Dapartment of the Madras Presidency, 1907-08 hm.dras, 1909), p.4 (ho...reafter as Administration Report Forest Dept.) 1 Proceedings of the Board of Revenue (Land Revenue) , Forest, No. 23, dated 1.2.1909.
3.. The total area of the Madras Presidency was 1,42,255 sq. miles. A Statistical Atlas of the Madras Presidency 1920-21 (Madras, 1922), p.lr .Administration Report Forest Dept. 1923-24, Vol.li (Madras, 1925), p.27.
4. Tribes like Koyas and Ronda Reddis w:l:!re dcminant groups in Godavari district. Bsqatas, Ronda Doras or ltonda Kapus, Gadabes, Khonds, M\lka Ooras, Parjas, r<otias, Dhulias, Gbasis, Danbos, Paidis, Valmikis, I<mmlaras, Kl.llmNlries, Ojas, Mulias, Oginbas, Rooas, Jatapus, savaras, Rudulus and Goudas were concentrated in Vizagapatam district. See, A. Aiyappan, Report on the SOcio-eeonard.c Ccnditions of the Aboriginal Tribes of the Province of Madras (Madras, 1948), p.6.
s. Dattinant Tribes in Kurnool were Chenchus, in Guntur Olenchu.~ and Yanadis, end in O!ittoor ond Nallore Yanadia and Irulas ~ich were classified &9 criminal tribes. Ibid.
41.8 The hill regions of the Agency were generally divided into Faupa
6 and GOOem areas or blocks, with 30 (around 700 sq. miles) and 10
(around 740 sq. miles) 'lTUltta.CJ' or estates in each block
respectively. Gudem had 411 villages (in 1921) with a population
of around 21,780, wherea~ Rampa had 230 villages with a
population of around 28,050, even though area-wise there was rx.>t
auch of a difference. In ot;.her ~rds, the density of population
was far greater in ~ than in Gudem, it being 40 per sq. mile 7
in Rampa and 30 psr sq.mile in Chiem. But gaograhically G\¥3em was
less accessible than Rampa, with a robust chain of rrountains and
rough valleys ~ich \ere inaccessible to outsiders due to poor
ocmnunications. The striking difference between the two was the
fewer number of 'mttadare J in Gmem as CXI'I'pBred to P.arrpa •
Traditionally it was the lltllttadari' system which provided a
structural fr8l'l'!SWOrk within \'hlich ell the tribal cx:mnunities ware
effectively united and ruled by feudal rajas or lords from the 8
plains.
'Muttaaart t system
{ I The nuttadars in the Rampa region were the actual rulers as
direct agents to the feudal lords or rajas fran the plains. The
t t • I ) muttadars, however, had no property nghts m land. A nuttadar, --·----,--------------·--.. -... --------~--- ... -- ........... " ........ _ 6. For geographical infornetion see, G.T. Beag, Report en
Census of India, Vol.XIII, Part I, Madras 1920-21, ~. 7-8.
7. Report from Agent, Vizagapatem Agency CGolt. of Madras) Land Revenue and settlenent, G.o. No.2587 (Rev.), 11th Dec., l929rGou't. of ~dras, Rev. Dept., G.O. No.l371 (Rev.), 17th July 1930; Also see, Land Rev. and Sett., G .. O. No.312 (Rev.), 16th Feb., 1923 (Govt.of Madras hereafter as G.O.M.)
8. Christoph Von Purer Haiaondorf, The Re:idis of the Bison Rills (MacRdllan, London, 1945), pp.28 ff and 1671 B.H. Baden-Powell, The India Village Oommunity with Special Reference to the Physical Ethonographic and Historical Conditions of India (Delhi, 1972), w.120-21, 163-65 and 171-74.
4t9 9Cf!erally speaking, was entitled to oollect taxes or levy new
9 ones. Dlring the British rule their :rrediatory role remained the
smne rut the unlimited powers they enjoyed so far were clipped
off. Under British admdnistration a'muttadar'had only the right
to oollect a fixed revenue - as fixed fran time to time by the
Agent - and receive a rerwneration for doing so either in cash or
in the shaps of grants of land and trees free of rent. Ha,nwer,
these righte had no st.Qtutory basis and the 'nuttadars' ~~e
permitted to enjoy them only E.lS a matter of policy. All the I
rights could bs taken EMay by the British Gcwerrment should it ~ 10
become r'fessary to do so. In other 't.'Ords, they ware effectively
brought into the fold of colonial administration, ~ich, in turn,
regularised and controlled their .rights <even the right of
hereditary GU.CC'OSSion to 1MUttas1).
_...__. ..... _........--.. ... ..............,_....._ ...... ··------..... - P P __ _........,,._ I • I • .. ._.__...._,._....._,........_.
9. Theoratically ·~ttadar• collected land revenue and re.id a fixed 'tcattubadi • (revenue) to the rnja in the plains. Far hio cervices h:l retained the land revenue o:>llected in excess of the 'Kattubadi • am:runt. He also enjoyed free lands. A. Aiynppan, op.cit., pp.25-261 Also eoo Minute 24 August 1848, Board of RGvenue Proceedings, 24 August 1848, Urnia Office Library, I.ondon), quoted in David Arnold, "RebP.J.lious Hillmen: TOO Gudem - Rampa. Risings 1839-1924a, in Ranajit Guha (Ed.), SUbaltern Studies I ~~itings en South Asian History and Scciety <Oxford, 1982), p.l04.
10. For details see, roM., G.Os. No.87, Rev.dt. 14th Jan., 1929; No.l09, Judicial, 16th Jan., 1880; No.l666, Rev. 27th July 1929, No.2sa7, REN. 11th nee., 1929; No.2162, RaY. 27th Aug., 1938J No.ll53, Rev. 11th JUne 1934.
11. F.R. Hemingway, ~dras District Gazetteers: Godavari District (Madras, 1915), p.62, Also see David Arnold, op.cit., p.99. In 1916 there was an 'outbreak• in Gudem
1mutta' when one Virayya I))ra ~ ~ fran his 'nutta~ During this rebellion the British rulers used the \1ii!e8.POJl of takinq away the right to'mttas' to break the 'uuttadars' fran the rebellion. The British neddling with the traditional right of succession to rruttas was the nain grievance of
'mutt.adars' ~ich pushed them into the lap of Raju. See, Fortnightly Report, Ist Sept.,l922, No. 7593-1, Public, p.437 tetter from R.A. C'21'8ham, r.c.s., Chief Sec. to GeNt. to the Sec. Govt. of India, Hem. ~· dt. F.S.G. 16 Sept., 1922,
420 This ctmnge not mly altered the power structure in the tribal
scx:iety, blt also brouqht a kind of economic unc:ertllinty into it.
This altered part:ar structure and capricious oconcxnic conditions
antagonised the 'nuttadars~
To eom9 extent, under the traditional ntructure the tribal msse5 ware
oppressed by the 'mttadars ~ under colonialism, the 'mutt:adars I
themselves~ losers, for some cf their ~sand privileges waro
taken FlllaY by the British. Colonialism, therefore, bccntts tho oo:mtxxa
faa \dlicb bound together the' mJttadnrs' ll.nd the irmsses. Thus Gtt!!rgcd
the dual role of ·the' nuttadars' vis-a-vis the M:myam rebellion.
The \nuttadars1 (:atronised rebels by supplying then 'with daily
provisions and non-cooperating with tho Britioh as long as Raju 12
had an upper hand in the rebellion. Th9y no longer connived against
the Britioh authority once it baemna apparent that tha 13
rebels ware lotdng ground •. t\'a shall ba brinqing this dual role of the
'muttadars1 much nnre sharply in later ssetions.
<Pod.u 1CUltivation
'Podu' eulti vat ion had been going on for aqes in the Agency &reaa. A
small tract of land on the slops of a hill \las cleared at the end of
the year. ~ dried ~ was blrnt during March-April. The ashes ................ a ....... _. ill I ll-*"41111o.-.......------·-·-----~-· -----.... ··~----· -· -· --------11. No.7363-3, PublicJ Letter fran F.w. SteWart, x.c.s., tqmcy
carmissioner, to the Chief Sse. to Govt. . dt. Narsatntam, 11 Sept., 1922, · Pub.Dept .. , (Confid), p.4, Meldr&s Gallet'l'ml:!nt Prcx:lanation issued by J,..R. Huggins, Agency Cbt'mi5sioner enclosed to W3ekly .Report fran J.R. Happell, Officer Cotmondinq, Agency Operations, for 28th Dac., 1922, Pub. Dept., (Confid), pp.l68-69.
12. To pick up few instances out of many, see r.m:.ter fran P.w. Stewart, Ibid., . dt. 2lrd Sept., 1922 (Daily Rttx>rt), pp.8-ll; Letter from J.R. Huggins, to the Olief Sec. to Gcwt., dt. Camp, Araku.- 9th June, 1923 .C~ly Report), pp.260-63.
13. For instances, see letter fran J.R. Huggins, dt. W<llir, 22 Sept., 1923 (Weekly ~), Pub. Dl!pt., (Cmfid), pp.30l-o2, Weekly Report by SWeney, dt. Camp, Olintalapudi, 31 Y.:ly 1924, Pub. Dept., (Canfid), p.384; Press Ccmnunique, dt. ~ (k)tacamund• 5 June, 1924 in Rampa Disturbances, Ql.\'1., P&rt VII, Pub. Dept., ceonfid.>, w.JJG-37.
421 served as rranure for the crops. The soil was not be touched with
implemnts of any kind. With the first rains a variety of cholam
known &'l 'Khondajonna• naize, ragi and samai ware generally sow.
Occasionally, a snall crop would be obtained fran the same place
during the second year, but very often the spot was deserted i 1
till the jungle grew high enough to tenpt the Pcx3u a1tter. More
often a fresh ~ of land m ·the hill slopes was selected for 14
the next year's cultivation. Burning down a part of the forest
and then hoeing and broadcasting the seeds in the soil fertilised
by the ashes requires very little capital and fairly good crops 15
ware ensured, at least enough for sustenance.
The Koyas, the dominant tribal qroup in the Ranpa region, as a
rule, wuld not practise 'Po:iu' beyond the minimum required for 16
their personal ~. Before the oolonial governmnt took CNer
the m~t of the mjor as 'Wall as minor forests from private
hando, the hill peasants en joyed cxmsiderable freedan to practise
Podu in any (:8rt of the jungle. This freedom, however, was
effectively restricted once the hills ware q>ened to GoveriUI\\!nt 17
exploitation. -- ------------ _______ ,, __ M ____ . t_y'~··. •
', . '-., . - "\{': 14. East Godavari Agent's Report in <n't., G.O. No.l988, ~(~ ··: '.-. \ \
(Pol.), dt. 20 OCt., 1937. I '~. ~ ) I'
15. A. Aiyappam, cp.cit., p.15. " ) ~ < \ . . 1; .:J ,, i.'
\ --~' ·- ... ~_..~,J<-"'"' \ ~' .~,'!.! rev-~ _ ...
16. Ibid., p.l6. ~-
17. S.Playne, Southern India (Madras, 1914), pp.717-20: Administration Report Forest Dept. for Years 1902 ... 03 to 1912-13 and. 1915-16 to 1923-24: B.S. Baliga, Studies in Madras Administration (Madras, 1960), Vol.I, R].215•216r A. v. Raman Pao, &xmomic Development of Andhra Pradesh 1766-1953 (Bombay, 1958), pp.323-24 and 341.
. .. ~ .......... _.
. . :.:. \~
422 It was remarked by Madras Goverl"ment that as a result of "Podu'
large parts of forests had been destroyed; many perennial springs
which u.qed to exist had disappeared, and the sumner now in the
rivers which arose in 'Jiqency areas had. been diminishing year by 18
year and floods in the rainy weather had been aggravated.. This
adversely affected the colonial needs (like ~ for railways) •
Consequently between 1880 and 1900 nany forests ware declared
'reserved' and ~Pcdu' cultivation was banned there.
On the other ha.nd the i.IIplsition of restrictions en 'Pcdu' wa.s CNer
done by the forest officials. It was recorded in a Government
memo No.l6l/0-3, dt. 23rd July, 1923 that •as regards'Fodu'it is
noticed that Mr. Cotterell as Agency Cannissioner in June, 1922
CJaYe it aa his opinion that the country had suffered from too
severe restrictions on jungle clearance, that varioun
restrictions had been ooerdone and much [X)PI.llation and food 19
grains lost for the sake of forests of doubtful value".
Thus this attack oo the source of their subsistance econany
threatened tbe very existence of the tribal society. The bllk: of
the tribals came face to face with the J.mnadiate prospect of
starvation, since the area available under permanent '4et
18. GOM., G.O. No.359, Rev. dt. 23 Feb., 1922, p.4.
19. This was quoted in OOM., Pub. Dept .. , G.O.No. 108, COnfid. dt. 2.2.1925, p. 7. Eventhouqh th~e had been no J1al for.est reservations since 1899, it was observed in 1924 by C.A •. -Hendarson, Agent to <:;c:wernor, that "the repression of )PocJu' · has been going en pretty steadily since 1910 and there has been some discontent about it fran tine to tim •••• "
R.Dis. Confid. 4/23, dt. Vizag, 11th April, 1924, Fran C.A .. Henderson, l.c.s., Agent to the Galternor, Visagapatmn, to the Secretary to Govt. Rev. Dept., Madras, in Ibid., p.l8. Extracts from Adndnistrative Reports from 1909-10 to 1920-21 W&e qiven to show the seviarity of the Golrernment restrictions en 'Po3u1 and the cxmsequent discontent sm:ruldering in t:he hills. see Ibid., oo.lS-25.
423 20
cultivation as \ell as left unreserved for 'Podu'was very snall.
~ M:ldras Government officials noted thtlt the •paucity of lands
in the Gudem taluk for agricultural operations" once •podu' was 21
banned, had bs<::oma the •chief grievance of the people there•.
Hence the right to 'podu' in the forests had becon'e a mjor de!rand
of the hill peasants leading to SOlm! tribal outb.lrsts in the
first two decacbs of the 20th century. The need for 1podu' was
such thnt in epite of "fines and punishltonts 0 it \QG reported
that it was going an in the AgP..ncies as late as 1930's and 22
1940's.
Collection of Minor Forest Produce
Another maans of livelihood for tribesmen ~ the collection of
minor forest produce. Bafore the intrusion of colonial
authority, throuqhout the hill regions, the tribes enjoyed
absolute freedan to carry m thin specific cconanic cctivity. In
a bid to integrate the hill economy into the framework of
colonial econany (during late 19th century), the forest
department cxxnpletely usurped the riqht of collecting even minor
forest produce. The grip of forest departmoot was further
tightened from the ~inning of the 20th century, for the
collection of minor forest produce was t"'t'M done entirely either
20. flildras Legislative ~cil Proce3t:Ungs, Third Session, March 1923, Vol. XIII, Nos.l-10, Q;>.2784-85J October 1924, Vol.XX, Nos.l-12, pp.590-94: G.O.No.S72, Pub. Dept .. , dt. 23 July 1923, <DM: o. Bandia, Op.cit .. , p.6: Mministrative Report of the Madras Presidency 1925 (Madras, 1928), p.2: F.R. He.mningwa.y, Godavari District Gazetteer (1907), W•6 and 95-102.
21. Madras Le:jislative Council Proceedings, lrd Feb. to 6th March 1925, Vol.XXII, Nos.l-9, p.686.
22. Vizagapatam Aqaney Administration Report in CDM .. , G.Os. No.2403, Rev. dt. 21 N0\7.l934J No.l869, Pub. (Pol.), 14 Nov. 19381 No.l880, Pub.(Pol.), 20 Sept. 1940.
424
by the forest department directly or by contractors under the 23
supsrvision of o:>lonial authorities. In sane places the forest 24
department retained the 'seigniorage system•, which was in voque. 25
But the rates were fixed by the forest department.
The qoverntt\9nt rmnopoly of the collection of minor forest produce 26
deprived m:my tribals of their neans of living. No doubt there
still existed the lease, peruiit and oontract system in private
hands, but the forest depart:n\'3nt by following tho principle of ___ ............, ____ . . ..... ... ___ _...... ______ . --·-·-"~-----·---23. It was recorded by forest d,gpartmant as early as in 1904-05,
that "in Vizag no leases were given out and the oontrol of the sales (of minor forest produce) was kept entirely in the hands of the dapartrnmlt. The revenue a>llected Rs. 23, 345 was the largest in the history of the district due chiefly to the brisk dmland for gallnuts oaused by failure of· t.Mt crop in the ~ presidency. In Godavari, minor produce was chiefly exported frat~ the Aqency tracts m payment of the usual seigniorage fees. In Kistna babul gum ~s collected departmentally and supplied to the Suparintendent of stationary.... In Guntur, gum, honey, and wax collected departmentally•. Adadnistration Report Forest 0epartm2nt, 1904-oS (Madras, 1906), p.25J Also see Ibid., 1905-o6 <Madras, 1907), pp.29-30; 1906-1907 <~ras, 1908), p.29.
24. Ibid., p.l9; Also see .Administration Report Forest Department year 1902-03, Q'?.2S-28J Year 1904-05 (Madras, 1906), pp.25-26J year l905-o6 CMildras, 1907), pp.28-29J year 1906-07 (Madras, 1908), w.29-36J year 1912-13 (Madras, 1914), pp. 13-14J year 1919-20 (Madras, 1921), pp.28-30. Urder the "Seigniorage system", "penni ts for the collection of specified produce and articles such as stone 1 chiselled and unchisell.ed, gravel, squared timer, etc., at rates .fixed by the Porest deo.partment are granted to persons applying for them. This system obtains in unreserved areas 11bere the right of oollection of forest materials is not leased wt to contra.ct-..ors•.. A .. Aiyappa.n, op.cit., p.l9.
25. It was observed that "the sowcars and other plainsaen, who (took) such perm! ts threu<;Jh their old established c:onnexions with the hillmen.... cheat(ed) the illiterate hillmen by using false ueasures and weights and by paying them for the goods far below any reasonable rate". A. Aiyappan, q,.cit., p.l9.
26. See, Edqar 'rburston, Caste and Tribes of Southern India (Madras, 1909) Ust reprint, tendon 1965), Vol .• II, Rl.27-33J C.H. Benson, q>.cit., w.S-7r Administration Report Forest Department 1919-20 (Madras, 1921), p.29.
425
yearly renewals oould effectively oontrol these private agencies.
But the d3partment (X)Uld not a:m.trol the arbitrary fixing of low
wages at piece-rates by these private sgencies and thus check the
extreme exploitation af tribals. As a. result the hillman thlo
collected minor forest produce under the system of contract \1ere,
paid very low rates for the produce. These low rates ware
arbitrarily fixed by the private cxmtraetor ~ \"as often backed 27
by the pawarful governnent agent.
Even the trading a::mmunities in the hills were effected by the
colonial rule and had to leave their profession. In all the
hill regions the minor forest produce -~ich was collected by the
tribals ~ p.'lssed em to t.he plains through the traditional \ ,
trading comnunities. For instsnc:e, Salijas ware describsd es the
"Chief Telugu trading cnste, scattered throughout all parts of
the Presidmcy•, carryin9 on the trc.de linking even the remote
parts Chills) with min centres of trade. In fact, this bec,ame 28
quite a problem at that time.
27. A. Aiyappan, op.cit., pp.lB-19.
28. Ses, Fdqar 'lburst.on, Castes and Tribes of Southern India (Madras, 1909 ) , Vol.l, pp .134-35. • Bapari • was another caste, meaning a trader, whose members ware traders and carriers between the hills and plains in the Vizagapatam Agency tracts. See, Ibid., p.211. 'Besthas' ware another group \'lho ware traders and baing m:>st numerous above the ghats. see, Ibid, p.2l9;. This traditional system of trading was however, replaced by the contract/lea.ae/parmit system, explicitly and legally controlled by the COlonial Governm:mt, depriving these groups of their livelihood. Consequently, m:my of these groups by the beginning of the 20th century shifted to agriculture and other forms of work like ooalie labour.
426 System of tCoolie' Labour
To earn a livelihood nany of the hill tribeS tumed to tooolie1
labour. The forest department ~a the biqqest employer of the
hill tribal labour. Ths tribals ware SJi)loyed for various forest
operations ineludinq road work. 1\'hilo it was said that they
ware paid at local rates for their labour, nnny <:XXq>laints were
made to the Aiyappan Cc:xmlittee, appointed by the Gcnernrrent of
Madras in 1946 to enquire into the socio-econanic o:mditions of
the aboriginal Trib!s of the province, that the hill.m:2n ~re not
paid at all for oertain type of forest terk.. If at all they ware
paid, "the Gcwernment rates ware often bslow the current narket 29
rates". lt was remrked by F .w. Stewart, Pqency Ccmnissioner
Vizaqapatam, in Septembar, 1922 that 11t.he deputy Tahsildar
(Bastian) has taken labour for road ~rk (in ~) without 30
paying for it .. This my ba t..rue •••• " Interestingly, this ~
one of the najor grievances V!ich aroused the tribals against
colonialism during 1922-24. This \aS a>rroborated by A.R.K.
Knapp, Hone lbnber in Madras LEgislative Council, after his visit
to Narsapatam an 22 November, 1922. To quote him: "Every ate -··----------··-·...._...._ ________ ,.._,........__. ....................... -..... ----··---~._._............,.,.... ____ 29. A. Aiyappan, op.clt., p.20.
30. Oani-official letter fran F.W. Stewart, Agency camdssioner in-c!Ytrge,Vizagapataro, to the Chief secretary to GO'.Tornrozmt, dt.. Csnp, ~sapatam, 12 Sept., 1922, Pub. Ospt., (Strictly Confidential), p.35J Demi-official, Stewart, Ibid., 18th S<;pt., 1922 <J)aily Report, Confid.), p. 71 Letter fran J.R. Huggins, Agency camlissioner, to the Cllief Sec. to Government dt. waltair, 15th Dac., 1922, (Ws$J.y Report) Pub. Dept. (catfid), p.l64J weekly Report fran J.R. Hugqins, Ibid., dt. 23rd June, 1923, therein enclosed a report fran Deputy Tahsildar:, Malkanaqiri, to the Agency c:amd.ssioner dt. llth June, 1923, p.270.
427
seems to be agreed that the 1mpress~nt of labour for road
ml!k fng, etc., has something to do with it, (Manyam rebe11 ion of
19224 24) more particularly ~en joined ~ith the general 31
suggestions· that the impressed labour ~as not paid for•.
Forest contrllctors ~re also big employers. of tribal labour and
the off1ccrs of the Forest Department tere expected to see that
the tribesmen got fair ~ages. Ho~ever, the links bet~een the 32
•notoriously corrupta forest officials nnd the forest
contractors, ~ho monopolised private business tn the hill tracts.
effectively denied justice to the hill peasants.
There were other forms of oppressive labour ~tch ~re vicious,
harrassfng and unjust vestiges of hillmenis slavery. One ~as
'Vettf' labour - underpaid or free customary labour -, the other
\:laS 'goth11 labour - a form of debt bondage. ~ich often descended
from father to son. 'Vett.f • labour tJas especially employed by the, .. · ' . . ·. -- "':'' . .
~-------------~----------··-------~------------~---~-------·----· l .
31. r.r. A.R.K. Knapp visited Narsapatam on 22 Nov., 1922. Note on return to Madras, Pub. Dept •• (Strictly Conffd), p.l56.
This type of forced labour by the forest officials and others matched by their cruelty explains in part the mass base of the Manyam rebellion. For instance, the Deputy Tahs11dar of Gudem, Bastian, and his peon ~re reported to have applied Yarra (Chilly po~dor) to labourers (on the wounds caused by beating) on the road to make them work harder. See Report from the Deputy Tahsfldar, Malkanag1r1, to the Agency Commissioner. dt. 13 June 1923, appendix to, a ietter from J.R. Huggins, dt. 23 June 1923. (Weekly Report)., Pub. Dept., (Strictly Conffd), p.270; Also see, M •. Venkatarangaiya, The Freedom Struggle in Andhra Pradesh (Andhra) Vol.IIt (1929-31) (Hyderabad, 1965). pp.365-70.
32. See, Administration Report Forest Department. years 1902-1903 to 1924-1925. Each annual report has one chapter on the aconduct of establishment• ~hich gives ample evidence of the •notoriously corrupt character• of forest officials. ~hose conduct was never recorded even as •satisfactory" on the whole.
428
Forest Dapartment in the ~ region once the billa t."3rc
in~atod into the =lonial ~. Satotiml3 ~lsory
lobour tOS extracted fran tho tr ibllla in scma (X)l't.ions of thl3
Agency under A\.ct l of 1858. This amounted in pract103 to forced 33
labour tlith no wa<JGS or low ~·
~. from the later half of the 19th amtury, it ~s ths
Forest ~tmant which fJ!Il2rgCd m tho biggest ~loy3r of tho
hill labour for lo.ying roads end other ca::munication fcciliti~
moGtly undM" syotG'll'IO lllto 'Vot.ti'. Thin, in turn, strengthoncd
the resentmant amopg tribols llgaint the lllien colonial rule.
This resentmMt consolidtlted their Mti -colonial c:onsciousnesa.
'Illegitimacy' of British Rule Enters Popular PQ!rccption
The p3Qaants in PD:mp:t. haw h::ld a variot.y of expsrienc3S that h!lve
prodUced the awareness of their 91'ievonc:es end the 'illegitintcy•
of ~ British authority which parp3t.uated those cp:ievancao. As
we have SE'Jen earlier the annihilation of tho hill p:Jasants ' ..
traditional subsist.ano3 economy podu cultivations, the usurpation
of their cust'.ca3ry rights on forest resources like collection of
minor forast produce and the imposition of an J.nereasingly
burdensom systems of unpaid or underp!lid earviees and forced ..,. • ... , ......... ., ........ t ..... , .............. _.,_., -----·-·--"' ________ .. ·-··---· _ ............ ---·"·-·-·-
33. Dso-offic:ial letter fran Stetmt, op.eit., dt. 12 sept., 1922, Pub. Deptt. (Strictly Confidl, p.Js, Mndras Legi.alative Council Proceedings. Third Session, Sept.embar 1922, Vol.Vlti, Nos. 1-5, pp.l73-74. This type of forced frea labour was abolished mly in 1938 and 1940. Sea, GlM, G.O.No.242, Public (Pol.) dt. 8th Feb., l938t G.O. No.l408, Pub.(Pol), dt. 19th July, 19401 Also ooe, lettor of the Enst Godavari Ag'Gnt in G.Os. No.l534, Pub. (Pol.), dt. 15th Sopt., 1939J No.l890, Pub. (Pol.), at. 20th Sept., 19401 No.988, Pub. (Pol.) dt. lStb March 1941.
429
labour by the British Goverrment \-!are najor factors M'lich
generated and ultiuately strengthened the a:msciousness of the
'illeqitimcy• of oolonial rule in the hills. TOO nost ~Y 0...
frustrating factors in all these cases t"are that no altertlti ves
to tpodu1 cultivation t:are provided. Instead, the oppressive
British forest policy and rigid law enforcing mechanisne ware
encountered by the tribals menever tbey tried to go back to
·their old forms of living. This frustration, acted as a strong
radiClllizinq stimulus for ection fran below against the perceived c-.
•unjust' and 'illegitin\;e' British rule in the Ranpa region.
Once the 'illeqitimacy.' of British rule entered into popular
perception the foundations t~ere laid for a radica.l outburst from
b3l.ow against British r1.1le in Rampa.
It doas not man that wa are totally danying the existence of
consciousness of grievances ~erated in <X>UrSe of the tribals •
day-to-day interactions with rmti ves fram the plllins. For
instance, there did exist the scwcars • (m:mey-lenders' ) econanic 34
enslavement of the hill peasants, exploitation by private 35
~ess groups and forest contractors, alienation of land to
-'----------· .. ----·----.... ----... - ......... ····-· . ...._........ ............... ~.....,_..,.....
34. For a <btailed cbscription of this ~hod of exploitation see, OO.'Vf., G.Os. No.258, Darelopm:!nt, dt. lrd Feb., l940J No.268, Dsvelopment, dt. 12th Feb., 1941; No.l249, Pub.(Pol.), dt.26th June 1940, A. Aiyappan, op.cit., pp.22-24.
35. For details see, Factual Msmranda of Pub. CPol.) Dept. on excluded and partially excluded areas (Printed) QX\1., l946J Also Ibid.
43J
36 bigger ryots fran plain!J, and so on. t"~i10t tt:a arc interested in
is identifying tho dominant str~~ within ~~e overlapping
consciousnesses. Esp.....acially, the probletr'.s a.ssociatoo with plains
(native) people tad not threatened the \rery existence of the hill
£.l9asants' suhsistance cconany. In the face of the British
Government's monopolistic exploitative control of the hill
r.r:aources which did so, tho problems associated with plains
<native) poople ~·way or other secondary. TOO
internalisation of the devastating soci~c expcrioneos
under B.ritish rule thus ~trenqthened the basic strand of anti-
colonial consciousness ,;ushing the other forms of conscioui<oo.,oaes
into the 'background at least for the period of colonilll rule~ It
is there!ore not llt all ourprising to note the conspicuous
36~ GOM., G.Os.No. 129, Local & Municipal (Legislntiva) dt.27th Sept., 1916; lb.l493, Haro (Judicial) dt.. 19th July, 1917.
Paradoxically, even the 'Ag~ncy Tracts Interest and Land 'l'ranofer PLt of 1917' tshich aimad at curbing tho nefario~ transactions of plainstren, \\'ho simply pocketed the properties of the hill (:JCnsants "for a oong .. , b.Y lending ~roney at "extortionate rates of interest• and also in ~.3 cases appropriated the lands for failure to repay t.he loans, was a failure due to uany loopholes in the Act. An amendment was no doubt, p!tased fiY.ing the maximum rate of inerest on the debt& borrowed by hillmen as 6 1/2% instead of at 24,, but that was done only in 1940.
Regulation 11 of 1940 to Act l of 1917 wac ,;naoer.i fixing the int~t rateq on debt~ of tribals. See, ~ ... G.O.l~o.B.tl, l.ecjal, dt. 27th May 1940; For details on loopholes in the Act of 1917, £e~, Board Proceedings t-~.605, dt. 27th Feb. 1929, @1; OOM., G .. Os. tm.281 (R!N.) dt. 3rd Feb., 19201 No.2315 (Rev.> dt. 5th Nov., 1931; No .. l21l5 CRev.) dt. 26th June 19347 East Godavari llgent.n' Rq:>ort in G.O. No.l81, Pub.ti?Ql.) dt. 3lnt Jan., l937J G.O. No.84, teqal, dt. 27th ~~y 1940; G.O.No.l249, Pub. tPol.) dt. 26th JUne 1940.
In spite of all these changes there t-:as no provision in the Act to safeguard tho alienation of p:-oduce by the tribals. Rather the Gc:Nerrnront han taken the side of the oowcars and allowed the so-called "e1rooth collection" of debts. See, Ga-l., G.Os. No.2627, Develop:n:mt, dt. 13th 't<lov ., 191307 Board's Report in 268, D::welopment , dt. 12th Feb., 1941.
431
absEnCe of apon hootility ta...~ pl.oino CO".a:oro, big;or ryot.s,
businossmn, etc., throughout the mbsllion. Th3 cole object of
the tt.anyam reballion was to rea:we tb3 11un just.. and
• illegitimate• Britioh rulo in tho 8E:Dlpa IX!gion. Consequently
only the atlhite" officers md soldiers and Governmnt
inotitutions liko police stations and Tohsildars represonting
civil wt.hority ttara ott.llckcd. This c:an:a to b:! reoogniscd by t.bo
enquiry oonduct.ed in 1924 by 'l'.G. Ruth2rford, Sp::ciol
Ccmd.osioner, ~ Op:n'ations, into the root muses for tho
uttor oonte!r\9t of ooloniol rule mnifested during the rebal.lion. 37
According to the E.flQUiry:
'l'h3 root en use of the population· of the tract (~) b3in.q m ready to halp the fituridm:s end supproos informatiOn as to their ~ts, especitllly in orcas like Gnbgroa fl~l end Paths taluk ganorally \\'hero there h:ld boen no Bastian to magnify into a tyrant mad no forest grievances to dilate on, in I must a:.mfeas e. pusale to 11'0.. • uoinly it aunt I think b3 due to 80!110 highland spirit of • cussedness • mixed with a sneaking fe3l.lng of edministrntion for the adventures in their fight c;aint the Sircllr tAlieh it amnot ~said md dono anything to endcnr itself to them- the activities they C3 are DDStly repressive or J.nvolw distasteful t:!Orlt an in the construction of roads or ths objectionable practices of police and revenue subordinates.... ~ of the rebalG questioned by ma could give no parsonal reason for hostility to Govo.rnmnt (and they are not siuply criminals)... (But) soma of them had boat\ fined \1hat appear to ~ unneeesnerily l.nrgo C'l1m'3 for forest offences end resented not baing able to go into the forest and cut what they t311ted for their ordinary purposes or to 9J:'UO G\Ten young
----------•-w••---·------•-•u-•--~--·-•-•~--·---·------~----•-••-•-•~-u-•-•--•-•-•-u-•------•
37. Rutherford Cll the causes of the P.amp!l Fituri, walt&ir, dt. 22nd August 1924 iD M. Venkatarangniya, The Preedcm Struggle in Andhro Pradesh CAndbra), Vol.III, (1921-31) (Hyderabsd, 1965), pp.367-68.
eal.ves without fee : as R'uda Ramayya p~t it •wa are fins:l Rs.lS/- for cuttinq a stick and have to pay four mmas for o c::alf GO high to grazett. Others tAlo had no lands nor cattle said they had besn able to eke out their li vinq by podu before it ~s restricted •••••
432
Th9 root cauoes for the rebs11ion had thus bean identified in the
enquiry as restrictions on ~podu1 al1tivation, bmlned «ecess to 38 .
rarest resources, exploitation on mad 't.'Or.ks, and tyranny of
forest and rGVenue officials. This analysis was lllso borne out by
those tJho spoke in ths M:ldras Ltsqislati ve Council during 1922 and 39
1925.
This grievance added with other grievances 'Wich wa hav<! 40
described earlier acted as a •c.oombustible material n for Raju • s
rebellion.
In other wrds, to quote BiS't:!allath Das, a ~r of the Madras
Legislative Cotmcil that "these grievances ~e there fran tilm!
to timJ they were brought to the notice of the officials
38. "The ttoya had lost his elemmtary rights. He could not fell one tres in the forest as bsfore for oookinq his food. His CC74 could not freely graze an the forest pasture as bafore. Thus the tbtole of the Agancy was seeking with discontent•. A report at Manyam rebsl1ion tGs sent by M. Annapumiah, Editor of a Telugu Paper 'The Ccnqress • , to Matmtma Gandhi and the abridged version of tdlich was p.lbl.ished in, Younc.J India, JUly 18, 1929, VOl.XI, No.29, p.235.
39. Madras Legislative Council Proceedings, March 1923, Vol.XIII, Nos. 1-10, pp.2784-85J 5th to 9th Feb., 1924, Vol.XVI, Nos. 1-S, p.418; 4th to 27 March 1924, Vol.XVII, Nos.l-14, p.l077J lOth to 23rd o::tobar 1924, Vol.XX, No.l-12, pp.590-94r roM., G.o. No.572, PUb.dt. 23rd July l923r 3rd Feb. to 6th March 1925, Vol.XXII, Nos.l-9, p.686.
40. IbiCI., lOth to 23rd OX.., 1924, Vol.XX, Nos.l-12, p.590.
(British) t1it.hout any redrc:m baing 9iwn.... It is no t«mder,
tborefore, that such mn1festations (flbnyl!m reballion) occur in
tho USU£11 course, 1 stJ.y US\Ull (X)Urse, bEcause thlen a series of
griovancos rarain unredresaod it is wry mturnl thnt it should 41
mmifeot itsolf in COO"O form or othertt. The popular perception 42
of British rule flS a .,J'Ubbordunty"· rule 't.'hicb never aitrod at
redroasing t:hoir gricvlmOO!i "hsd baen at tho root of tbio 43
rcbtilicn•.
SocW Baso of the Rebellion
----·---~·----·--M----·---·-·-·-
Raju had tha gnmt ability to link up these popular griovt~no::n
with hio anti--colonial rebellion. fie could not mly grnop tho
prizary cxmtrodiction, i.e., hill p::aoples' intereots w. colonial
oxpl.oitative Mads but wo also able to locate tba grievances of
tribals within the fr~Jt of colonial rule. In other wrao, Raju ~ in inculcating or int.ernalising his baaic anti
iqlerialiat ideolOC}y in the minds of his foll.~s os W3ll liS tho
tribal rrassoo, thereby bringing the nossea into the no.ticnaliGt.
rebellion as a radical forco. This he did in opito of hostile
reaction fran the Congress leadsre in the plains £md tha foet:
that his rebellion lasted only for a brief poriod of tt."' x~s.
41. fl..adras Legislative Council Proceedings, Nov .. , 1922, Vol.IX, No3 .l-5, pp.543-44.
42. Ibid., lOth to 23rd Oct., 1924. Vol.XX, No::l.l-12, p.593.
43. Ibid., ~. NO.IX, Op.cit., p.539.
4 3.4
Raju•r~ first band af f"oll~rs ware drawn from the PeddaYalaoa, 44
and t-1akaram tmuttat;' of the Gudem taluk. His trusted lieutenants
throughout the reb2lli.on were the brothers Gam Gantayya Dora and 45
Gam ~~llayya D:>r.a, Aggirazu and Yendu Padal. :Raju recruited m:my
of his men '*with the a.<Jsistance of the ~-n brothers • local 46
knowledge•. Many of the rebels bOO clustered around Raju ~re
victi.ms of colonial rule me way or tha other. The articulating
capacity of Raju laS shown in tho nanner in \>rhich he gatheroo all
thoce victims of ooloninl rule and gave a new interpretation to
their grievances by locating them in the particular colonial
social situation. lt is strild.ng to see the diversity of the
parsonal · experiences of the rebelo and yat the uniform anti
coloninl oonsciousnesa W1ich those experiences generated.
Gam broth13rs belonged to Battapanakalu village of M3karmn 1rm.ttta~
They were originally landholders, blt Bmstian, the ~ty
Tahsildar of Gu::lem, had deprived them of their lands and 47 48
deneqraded them to •t>eggar.ya.. To quote Gantayya Dora: ___ _.__.,.. ... .,.....,.. ............. ...__..____ ___ _... ____ ....._ ... _-........_...._ _ _..._ .......... ·-·· _ ..... ._.. .. __ _ 44. Letter from Stewart, dt. 11th Sept. 1922,
Pub.Oept .. ,(Confid.) p.4J also see Letter from St.e".:tart, dt. 22nd Sept. 1922 (Daily Report), Pub. (Confid) Dept., pp.9-lh OOM., Judicial (Police), G.O.No.l37, Jud .. dt. 24th Ma.rch 1923.
45. Go'tf(!l.r~t Revi.ew of the situation. G.O.No.231, Pub.,dt.24th f>':arch 1923, in M.Venkatarangaiya, op.cit.,Vol.III;p.360.
46. Rutherford en the causes of the Ramps. ~it uri , \~ltair, dt. 22nd August 1924, in M. Venkatarangniya, op.Cit., Vol.lii, p.369.
47. Ibid.
48. Letter from K.f.~rth3nna Pantulu, B.A.Ot:put.y Tahsildar, Gudem Talok, to the Aqency Comdssioner, dt. Narasapatmn, 3rd June 1923, No.534, enclosed to, a letter fran J .. R. Huggins, I.e .. s .. , Agency Ca:miasioner, to th~ O'licf Secretary to Gollt., dt. O:ul'p, Araku, 9th June 1923 t~:~kly Report) PUb. Oq>t. .. , (confld>., p.261: 1Uso ~e, Demi-official, Stewart, dt. 12th Sept., 1922, Pub. (}:apt., (Confid), p.33.
Bastian b:mavcd very cruelly and did so rmny \"Jl'Oll9D to the p30pl.G in this taluk thllt I do not find time to narrate them. Ple.aoe t:r!ar rt1J story. Bastinn d3pri ved DiS of my lando md gave thsn tr:taY to SU!Tarla Peddabbi. I bclgged him in so nany ways not to ruin m. I sat at his feet an a particular dny Entreating him not to ruin ntJ &nd h3 kicked ne with hin shoas thrice. I was not qiven the entire p3rtion af the land ordered to b3 d3livered tom. Then I baeama disgusted with f.ffJ life and sent om.y lfiJ tri.fe ond children from mt village. I aftet"Wt~rds cl\109 to the f~ of Raju Gcru... and I sn determi~ to GC3 ~ c::nd • • • ni:Y house also \'GS blrnt • • •.
This •unjust trcat:ar!nt of the G5:m brothero end Gonthmt Dhora
goinq about in bsggary" brought sympathy to them from the p:!Ople 49
of the ~mn lr.utta ~ They ~re .nlso quite influential in the 50
'uutta1 md br0\l9ht m:my follOW3I's and sympnthisers to Raju.
ApQrt from Gsm brothers, Aggirazu ~ another close msociate of
Raju, awho joined fran the plains \dlen the fituri was well Sl
started and for his am reasons a. It ms ascertaind by ~
that Aggirazu, wase real nmoo tS.s Veqerazu NarayOM Rnju, '\-:as a
Kshatriya by caste, age 25 years, 5 feet 5 inches in height ond
tms native of 1J.n9erazu~mn in Vizagapatam district". Sw<!ney
further reported that SOD'O ten years ago Agqira.zu settled at
«umadavilly villnge of ~varsm talUk, Riatna district. This
--------------------------------~~-------·-·--·,------~---~~-------49. M. VenkatarBl'l9aiya, op.cit., Vol.III, p.369.
SO. Report fran Happell, Off icar omnanding, Agency ~rations, Govt. of Madras, Pub. Dept., dt. 23rd July 1923, No.S72 CMis). ·
51. M. Venkatarangaiya, op.cit., Vol.III, p.366.
436 S2
villge h3 loft around Mny, 1923, probably on the p3rsonal 53
invitntion of Raju and joined the rob::llo.
Yendu . Pa.dal elias Balla Padal, en ex-village m.:msif of 54
PcddaWllasa 'nutte' in Gl.ld$m toluk, ~ another important
individual me joined Raju. He too WZlB a victim of oppression by
Blltltian. Hie young con latar eaid that his father 1:38, •not.
being p;Ud for read work ald t:QS boing fined Rs.lOO/• llS ~11° ..
Ho nlfQ aoomplaiMd of tho cbmnds of beat o:mstablos fran
Chintnpalli and Rnzuv~i who~ o.t Peddavclctm for milk end 55
fO'i:Jln•. It t£lS also nlleqed thnt Yendu Padnl \'38 promised the
Peddaval.zlsa 'mtta' by Bastian if the ro.a.ds ~re wilt without 56
payment; .but B.astian. ditcbsi. him once the tiOr.k.. tBS finished.
Padal joined Raju to give vent to hin revenge end to end British
rule in the hills Which ~ed unjust to him.
Thsre w.xe m:my mro 'dasparlldo:zs' who tJttal.led the t"ebel ranks
due to their parsonnl griovances against colonial officialdom.
In puticulllr, a recurring thGma in mmy of the grievancoo ttaS
52. Report from swaney for 7th Sctpt., 1923 sent from Ram3varam in bpn Disturbtmces, Part 11, Pub. D:lpt., (Confid), p.298.
53. Letter from Sri Alluri Sri ttama Raju, to Pa'icberlc SUryanarayana Rnju (alias AggirMu). dt. 16th Sept., 1922 enclosod to D:mlf....gfficinl fran P. Armitage, I.G.P. to a.A. Gr&ham, I.c.s. Olief Secret.cry to Gout., No.8 dt. camp. Naranapatmn, tho 17th Sept., 1922, Pub. Dept., (Confid), pp.4l-42. Also e&3, Daily Report from SWeney for lOt.h and 11th ~!tN., 1923, Pub. Oopt., (Confid), p.321J M. Venkat.arangaiya, op .. cit., Vol.III, p.89.
54. Daily Report from Bappell, Officer Ccmn!mdinq, Aqeney Operations for lOth 03:., 1922, Pub. ~., (Confid), p.l38.
55.. t>1. Ve:nkataranqaiya, op.cit., Vol.Ill, p.368.
56. Report from ~1, Govt. of K:ldrna, Pub. Dept., dt. 23 July 1923, No.572 CHis.).
437
tho cruelty of D:.?puty Tahsildar Bastian. For inst.ancG, men Mr.
scoot and <.mm'd questioned the vill.agero of ~~le:n, they
snid that GS!ii\1 Gflntayya had told tha::a thnt a113 .and tho p::;ople of
~aka\taram 'rr:utta' only uanted to kill the tk!puty Tahsildar and 57
\-JOUld go bf:xm3· \!~hen this t:as accomplished0• Bcstian t!:lS hated
virtuvally by th3 tiholo 'lmlttni and not surprisingly this 'mutta'
was a strang base end n recruiting ground for Rnju throughout the 58
rcb3llion. lt t~o further roport.od by J.R. Huggins, JVJenr:y
Cmmissionor, in 1922 that "eo:ne of the captured rebels h:ivo be3'l
examined eo to td'mt gri('Ycnoas might hav~ led. to the rclx!llion.
Th3y are pr&Ctically unonitiOUs in saying that the 0::\!puty
Tehsildm: Bastion and his Overs~ had underpaid and naltreated 59
thooe tJJrld.ng on . the r:o:ldo •••• a~ It tms also sugqostcd thnt 60
Ba!ltian "has taken labour for roadt!orlts mthout P=lYil\9 for ita.
t:orst of all Bastian and his 9E'OUP (cworscer tJnd peon, cte.) had
invsnted a novel mathod of torturinq tho labouroro on roadworks.
After bating tho labaurGt'O thoy anpplied 'Varra 1 (chilly Po.1ibr)
-~~~~·· I • v T - .__........_ ... ,. ·--- IW ··---........__ ......... II* V
57. Daily Report from F.W. Stetart, dt. 18th Sept., 1922, Pub. Dspt. (Confid), p .. 70.
58. Lotter from K.Murtbsma Pantulu, dt. lrd June 1923, ~.R.C. 534, cp .. eit., p.261J tetter fran SWQrt, dt. 11 Sept., 1922, Pub. Dept., (Confid), p.4J .Letter frcm St:t:;tart, dt. 23rd S3pt., 1922, Pub. Dept., CConfid), pp.9-llJ ~ly Report fran Hugqinn dt. 23rd June 1923, Pub. ~., (Cbnfid), p.270.
59. t~y P.Gport from J.R. Rt.tggin&, Agency Ccmninniomr, to the Chief Secretary to Govt., dt. Waltair., 15th oa:., 1922, Pub. Ds,pt., (Confid). p.l6~.
60. lkmi-official, Stewart, dt. 12th Sept., 1922, Pub. D2pt., (Confid), p.lSJ Also see, Note by Mr. A.R.K. IWlpp an his visit of Nm'scpatam on 22nd Nev., 1922, Pub. Dtpt., (Confid), p.l56.
438
61 on the woundo. Bastian \:aS also notorious for extracting bribes
and for OL~riving the peasants of their Lands. Rutherford later
I I wrote that some rebels fr.om ~alamr.akaram rnutta ~rc inclined to
expatiate on the iniquitie-:; of Bastian in not t:aYirlC'J for road
work pr~rly, his misinq theo.ir .kist to put the proceeds into a-
his (M'! ~ket.. nnd it ten also all.tJed he naoo the madman
collect fran them tamrind and hors09rnm m an unprecedented 62
ccale". l<anldpati Kot.llnnapa&ll, elder brother of Yendu Padal,
told Rutherford that "Baotinn took mr1ay his l&ndn and gave it to
ot.hers. Ho rell'OVed him fr.om his headman'a post as useless and
his succeusor took not only the old service inam lands rut also 63
newly cleared land•. S~i~~r._ly, Rutherfp~d wrote. that. l<uda.
Kamayya "had e land disputeJ he paid Rs.300/- to Ba3tian for
a decision in his favour b.lt the suit was sti.ll undecided 'Mlen he
joined the rebels • as gave the na.tOOs of witnesses to the 6-1
transact ion and the person he borrowed the noney fran... The h"!!Sic
theme of all thcso ~taints ~s the exploitation and
oppression by colonial officialdom; and to escape it they had
joined Raju and hie anti~lonial war.
61.. Report from the ~ty Tah:Jildar, Malkanagari, t.o the .At;Jancy C'amrlsaionet:, dt. 15th June 1923, enclosed to Wec.Jcly Report from Huggins, dt. 23rd Juno 1923, Pub.Dept., (Confid),p.270.
On tha read works Bastian not only insisted on aforced labour frcn Koyas" but alco e.mployed force. "He attached plough cattle of the trihals, stopped the inflow of foodstuffs fran outside for the t~.o of the people and rook recourse to violent methods for achieving his objecto (of cxmpleting the road works).,. See, v.Raghavaiah, Tribal Revolts <Nell.ore, 1971), p.36.
62. Rutherford on the causes of the RtJ.mpa Fituri, wnltai r 22nd August 1924 in 14. Venkatllrnnga.iya, op.cit., Vol.III, p.368.
63. Ibid., p.369.
64. Ibid.
439
In general, l.arqe nwr.ber of tribals W3ro victims of intense
colonial exploitation. This trQOsf~ mny of them into 65 66 67
0 fituri&\rS and dacoits", 0 murderers•, 11 jailbirCJs11,
11rob!ber'S and 68 69
bandits", ar.d tho 111andleso bldm:lahesa.. 'l'h...oy noaded no
p$X'SUation to assur.m the role of rebels J but they wanted c leader
to art1culto their grievancea and lead them to· an cpen lilYsical
rovolt. t:hcn thio \GS provitbd by Sitnrtlt!'!S. Raju, they ~ro m3dy 70
to join the band of reb:lls.
Raju as 'Dsmdu.' (God) - A Masniah. from Above _____ _........_ ....... -----------· Tho hill peasants• desire for a cbnnge in the existing situation
did exist. . Yet..the. ~· coultLnot t.hem::lolves vim1alize .. a
proqrl!'lmla of action to rf!.llOV'C tho "jubberdust • rule of the
British.. ~tinq m paooMt rob2llion in Latin America, G.
Huizer hns pointed out t 0 lt is at this crucial point that either
p3a5nnts td.th urban <mp3rience... or urban leaders.. • ~
it'lp)rtant. 1'hoy can c::ihnnnel the vague mmrenesa of a need for
chs.nqe into a t10ro concrete Ei:\'~Ueneas of W3y& and reYns to cha.nc)G
6S. See, Press Camnunique, dt. Port St. Gsorqe, the 16th JUne 1924, in Rtlm:p:l Oisturbanceo, Part VII, Pub. oapt., (Confid), p.338
66. M.Venkatarnngniya. op.cit., Vol.III, p.368.
67. For tomS) instances see, Ibid., pp. 368-69.
68. Press Q:mnunique, dt. 16th June 1924, op.cit., p.3l8.
69. M. Vcnkatarangaiya, op.cit., Vol.IIl, p.369.
70. For instance, .four rebels from Malomakarmn, U<.oyyur mutta) •all land-c.r;minr;J, ~:he were mixed up in the ~ of a forest quar8, joined the Raju b3cause t.bay ware desperate ucn •••• a. lbid., p.368.
440 71
through orgtmiood effort". In tho amo of ~yc.m rob::U.lion, tho
leaebrohip '1::30 provided by a p38Mnt fran a plains villcgo, tho.
bnd oo:lt3 kt'la1led;Je of the national.iat politico ~ tha
plains.
Alluri Sitarmno Paju, n native of t-togllllu, in the t3t Godavari
district, laS born in 1897 in a Rshotriyn family and hnd his 72
schooling at his village. He studied upt.o the fifth form ot.
various pl.4ce9 in .Andhrn, tt) tOS not lma.«\ to b:l a bright student 73
nt echool. Subsequently, ot li!araonpur, 'tdloro h3 studied, h:l t;OB
reported to have ·~ a love for astrology (Jyotisha . 74
Sastran), p3lmiatry and horse-ridimt'. He also took interest in
the "study of tha prop3rtica of uedical herbs. At the eae of 18 .
ha bcccmo n 'sanyasi' and 1:.endered in the hill areas of the Agency.
Hi& austerity nnd hitJ JCI'lC»lledqe of astrology and Ii3iicino Md his
repu.te4 ability to t:anle wild animals gtdned for him tbs respect
tmd &dmiratlon of the tribnl people \dlo credited him with magical 75 .
~s·. -----~-JPM ___ ,,._, __ , _________________________ ,_Ul-·-----·--~~~---------
71. G0rri t Huber, Peasant Feballion in tabin Amrica. The Origina, FOI'IliSJ of Exprcsaicn, and Potential of Latin Amriean Peasant Uorost CPalquin Books, 1973), P.US.
72. Report by M. Annopumiah, 0 0on.gress., (Teluqu) editor, sent to Gnndht, op.cit., p.234J R2port from Happel.l, Officer cam:andinq, Agency Op:!retions, G:»t., Pub. D::pt., 23 July 1923, No.572 (Miah Lettt='I fran R.A .. Grare:mt, Chief &:c. to Gc:Wt., to the SGc. to Govt.. of Indio, Hom9 lk:pt .. , dt. 16th Sept., 1922, No. 7363-3, Public (Confid), p.6.
73. Report by M. Annapurniah, op.cit., p.234 ..
74. Ibid .. J Also see, Dani-official, s~, dt. 21 August 1922, Pub., Ospt., (Confid), p.2t, M. Ve:nkatarangaiya, op.clt., Vol.III, p. 79.
75. M. Venkatar8fl9lliya., ap.cit., Vol.VIII, p. 79.
4 41·
He bathed and prayed daily. He l'Sndered like a 'sanyasi 'and ~re
a turban, a lonq shirt and Jmickers, all mds of re:d""'(."'()lour 76
kbaddar. He also had a fleming beard. Raju had not only 77
0 obtained soma reputation for sanctity £Il1lll9 the local hi11m:m•,
but also "was undoubtedly very revered or feared by the hill folk 78
who fed him and his 11Dther and brother0• He was revered so much
79 that \\'herever he was, the villagers wall attended to his 1:11ants.
80 Raju' s reputation as a "holy mm0 t:as me ~ful aspect of his
charismtic personality, tihich helped him to influence the
popular mind in the hills.
Raju's charisne.tic personality b'3.S an assimilation of so many
myths that it fitted well with the traditional mind of hil.lmen.
Many post~13 or <$araeter!sties af. .his. .perscnality b'bicb
impressed· the tribals ware created by Raju himself. Many of the
myths around the reb31 leader tJare created by the msses
themselves, and this was tolerated by Raju. By the end of 1922,
Raju's "semi-divine position" in the eyes of the villagers had _________ .__................., .............. _.... ______________ _ 76. Weekly Report from Huggins, dt. 23 June 1923, enclosed. a
report therein fran the Deputy Tahsil dar, Mal.kanagiri, to the Agenc.y camdssioner, dt. 13 June 1923, Pub. Dept., (Calfid), p~269.
77. I.etter fran R.A. Graham, dt. 16 Sept. 1922, No. 7363-3, Pub. (Confid), p.6.
78. Demi-official from P.s.s. George, dt. Narsapat811\, 28th A\.l1Ust l922, Pub. Dept. (Confid), p.23.
79. It \'SS observed by George that the "late Assistant carmissioner, Polavaram, got him to DOVe near to Addatigal.a (Paidiputta) and the villagers I fancied there also attended to his needs". Ibid.
80. 'OEm:l-official, Stewart, dt. 12th SEpt. 1922, Pub. Dept., {Confid), p.35.
81 ba.en transfOt'lll!!CI into that of a "'dewdu .. (God) who h&d CXJm!! to
liberate them frc:n the 0 Jubberdust" rulca of the British. He
entered into folk songs as a 'mssiah' fran above tAlo had
decended to lead thGm ond renDVe their qrievancGS.
Alluri Sri Ram Rajul Brother Alluri Sri Ram Raju l Wa depend upon you, brother, for the red.e'nption of our slavery. Tmly (British) ware afraid to touch :you. Th3y l'Culd loo!t at your person steadily. If cne loo.'ts at your divine peroon, one would hove divino ltncx11ledgG.
You looked up llll the tracts in those thick forests 1 end undertook to wage """... • You r.:1id that you would bury this Feranghi (foreign)
82 rule. What n great llliln you rrust have ln!n!
There ware rrany other 'tn3Ssianistlc' elenent.s of his pairsonallty
thlieh helped him to c:::onmand the undaunted loyalty of his
follo.«!!rs as wall as tribal masses. Hs was believed to ~ 83 .
0 inwl.narable". ahs tnlld aake a • rain of arrmn;' and attack the 84
men in the tr~ (posts)•: under his lea.dcrship "no bullet 85
t«)Uld eter injure o: fituridar 11, and so en. As n folk £On9 later
86 oo:mtenDrated:
It ~s said that the \rohile nen wuld bring a large force, waylay all the tracts and catch hold of you without pain. It was said that h9
______ ...,.......,. __ 1d ·-· -· ·----·--.. ----·-·---------··-·---· .. - .. .---··-·-···---------... -... ........
81. ~ on the Aqency Rebellion for 8th o:tober 1922, from A .. J. flr:pp311, Pub. Dapt., (Catfid), p.59.,
82. A folk. £On9 popular bX.h in the Agency end plains \OS published in CIJ.'he Cmgress• which is repordueed in N. Venkatarangaiya, op.cit., Vol.lll:, Doeuln9nt No.U7, tp.453-54.
83. Report from A.J. Happell, op.eit., 8th Oct., 1922, p.59.
84. Ibid .•
would thrcm tanbs upon persons, and would shoot them with blUets.
But \\Culd the bullets of these wily Dorais touch }!Olll
(~is added>.
Interestingly Raju himself further strengthened these nwths by
mixing popular 'millenarian' vision with his anti-colonial war.
To quote M.. Annapurniah, mo \es mce his school class-state;
"Shri Rama • s temple te.S his abode. There he used to perform
' ' \ , tapas. Huge rrumbers flocked to have his darshan every day. They
used to listen to his utterances, which were, from all accounts,
reported to be thrilling. He used to deliver spiritual nessages,
but in the milk of spirituality there was invariably the sugar of
patriotism. People drank this milk with great fervour". ···87·
(Fllphasis added>.
Actual Course and Dynamics of the Rebellion --·----- _____ _...____ .......
It appears as if the rebellion started suddenly with the looting
of Olintapalli, I<rishnadevipet and Rajavomnangi police stations 88
on 22, 23 aitd 24 August 1922, respectively, by a band of 500
tribals under the leadership of Sitarama Raju. They walked off -------------··------·-------- . ---....---------86. Folk song in M• Venkatarangaiya, op.cit., Vol.III, p.454.
87. Report by Annapurniah, op.cit., p.234.
88. Telegram fran the Agency Camlissioner, dt. Maharanipeta, 24th August 1922 and Telegram from the District Magistrate, Vizagapatam, dt. Narsapatam, 25 August 1922, Pub. Dept., (Confid), pp.l-3J Letter fran F.W. Stewart, Agency camdssioner in-charge, to the Chief Sec. to Govt., dt. camp. Narsapatam, 11 Sept., 1922, Pub. Dept., (Confid). p.4.
Here our cxmcentration is not en the sinple chronological narration of the Wlr b.lt on the analysis of the social base, and other dynamics for the rebellion. For a sinple factual narration see, M. Venkatarangaiya, op,cit., Vol.III, pp.SO-
. 92; v. Raqhavaiah, Tribal ReiTolts, pp.39-47; J. Mangamma, Alluri Sitarama Raju, (A.P. State Archives ~aph Series, Hyderaba.d, 1983); Dantuluri Venkata Rama Raju, Viplava Veerudu Alluri Sitarama Raju Olaritra, (Bhirravaram, 1984, Telugu).
444
with 26 polico carbines and 2,500 roundo of m:amition. But in
re:tlity it hnd bsa1 brooding in the popuw mind at least fran
j:lnuary 1922. Thio t::lo t1. pariod of intensive no-tax catt:pDiqns in
the pl.airw. It \':3.9 in this ,.nriod that tho Gandhian promioe of
"&Qraj0 in one year had also caught t.h0 im.t!:qination of the
trib:sl DOsoos in tba hillo. 'nlis pariod cl.so td tnessed peasant
radicnlian in Pt:&:mtmdip:ld (Guntur district) preswrising tha
Congr~s lctxbrohip to go ahGad mth a no-rent C:.ltnp:lign, militant
civil dioob2dienco mv~ nt Palnnd, and mso <medus from
Chirala-Parnla cgainst the impooition of n municipality Uhidh
enhnnced tba tan t:urden en P!fU!!Mts artisans end emall ·l'Jusinoos 90
qroup3. The ns.ws Of those political mve.mmts ~:gainst CX>lonailiom
te:lCJie:l tha hill ~to through the Congreoo • prechnrakas' co
well as through Sitaram Raju. It was lnter reported by
officials that 'pracharako2' frO!' the Ccngreso md ~ engaged
to propcqate the principlaz of ~e.tion in the Godavari
Agency and tho Provincial Conqresn Ccmnittoo had discussed the
possibilities of incrosed political activity thero in Janum-y 91
1922. £Val though roither tha Provincial Cbngress camnittce nor
tho Ga!nvari 1UJency Conference could e::tatd the mas civil
disobedience aove.rrmnt into Rampn co that the tribnls griGvances
-·- .. ·----·------~Iii-··--·---··-··-··-·--·-----.. ----·-·· ... -···--·--·-·--.. -----89. Fomightly Report, dt. Ist Sept., 1922, No. 7593-l, Public
(Strictly Conficl), p.43. They have also released Vira.yya Dora from Raja'Vtl:llimngi police otation td1o invol ve:1 in 1915-16 raising in Gudem.
go. See Ompter IV abovo.
91. Report on the ~ R:!b3llion for 12th Octobsr 1922, from A.J. Heppall, Officer~, Agency Op3rotionn, Pub. Capt., (Ccnfid), p.6l, Letter frcm T .. G • .Rutherford, I .. c.s., Sp3cial Cca;;miooionsr, AcJ3ncY ()psrlltions, to the OU.ef Sse. to Govt. ~~, «ft. t.zaltair, 22 August 1924, in M. VGnkatarangaiya, qp.eit., ~.III, p.l66.
445 would also b3 integrated into tho ploins' non-cooperation
~~ Sitarema Raju t0.11 very much activo durinq this pariod
in prapaqating the alcss objcctionnble items of the non-q~
cooperation pra.JI'Emma" among the hill p::ms&ntii. It t:aS oboerved 'Ill
by M. Anrulpuminh that:
In ths t'OOle progr~ of GMdhiji tx;,ycott of courta and liquor cppo:Ued to him. ffi:l stllrtcd in the Agoncy tracts of Gcdovari and Vizagapatem Diatricto a cartpaign oZ prohibition. His piety and devotion attracted huge crowdo around Qim. His tU'd t.l<lO law to the Agency folk. Th3y t:ara quilolass and his eloquent ~ls ~ their ho...:1rts. 'Don • t dance att.end.Elnc:e ot the courts and don • t drink t.ras hi a D"CSS&ge to the villagers. His l~W!s&ge spread liko tlildfire. Not a'lO in tha Agancy but respondsd to hia blglG c:tlll. A net~ cxmsciowmess downed on the innocent folk. People gave~ drink in large numbarn. eourto trore deoort.ed. A llU1\'lber of "panchayat" mutts opranq up in the villDqes &nd justice t::10 t:dministercd loet!lly. Rzlju is reported to havo b!en n regulllr Khadi \bx'M'. Pr:cm the o:mfcsaions in tho "flturi •trialo,. it is clear thot Raju supplied only rondi uniforms ____ .........,.......___...__.. . ...,.._......, ____ , __ , _____ ._._. __ .__... ____ _
92. The Hindu, 0:. 8, 1921.
93. Osni-officicl from F .s.s .. Geo1'9e1 dt.N:lroapnt.am, 28th August 1922, (upto Stb CX:tobar), Pub. Dspt., (Confid), p.2ll M. Venk&tllrangaiya, op.eit., p.366J ~ by M. Anrulpumiah, op.cit., p.234.
94. Report by M. Annapurni&h, op.cit., p.234; Also IJatt.er fran P.W. Sts:mrt, op.eit., dt. 11 Sept., 1922, p.~J Osnioffici&l fran F.s.s. G3:>rga, dt. N:trsapatcm, 28 August 1922, Pub. (Confid), p.23; It taG dxserved by Rutharford that •investigations follo.-dng on inforrration as to neetinc.Jtl etc., obtained frQm captured rebels by the intelligence staff have shcm that the l?aju t:aS lt'llCh nore in COO'ml.lnication m th the plains and non-cooperators there thnn Mr. Happell thought • • • • "Report of Rutherford oo the Cl.luSes of tba R£mpa Fituri, op.eit., p.366J This connection of Raju \'lith tho progrenrre of non-cooperation 't.'aS t.\lDo hinted in a.t4., Pub. ~t., dt. 21st ~. 1922, No.974 (Mio)J Pub. dt. 20th Dec., 1924, No.894 <Mish Pub. 2nd Feb., 1925, No. lOB (Mfs.).
to his troops. Sjt. Rallapalli «asanna, a noncooperator and t(hadi producer of Tuni, was p~t on trial for having supplied kh!:tki Rhadi uniforms to Shri Rama Raju.
446
It seems that while propagating the Gandhian progrmmna, Raju had
been simultaneously workinq on the idea of raising a rebellion
against British rule, for it t:lS reported by a rebel dlo tmd b3en
caught and examined an oath by Sbmart the A<jancy Ccmtmissioner
"that Raju had bes1 endeavouring to raise the ex>untry six DOnt.hs
age (Janumy 1922), he had El:ddressed a mssting of village 95
headman, dEmanded a poll-tax of four annas a h9eda. He bad
created a scare at Kri8hnad3vipet as EDrly as February 1922 with 96
his intensive propaganda £!nOng the hill folks, consequently, m -·· ~-- ' --· --- ---- 97' ··- --'
had ba3n put under constant police eurveillanea. Thus, it ~
that Raju tl3S using the non"'C('))peration and its nassive progrtllrlme
of establishing panehnyat a:ro.rt.s, propagation of t:.Grperance and
Rhaddar as an effective instrument to cbannellise the vague
awareness of a need for change among the hill paasants into a
rrore concrete political consciousness li~ating Rlm'pa fran
British rule through organised effort. There is no evidence that
he aatunlly balieved in Gandhian non-violence. Rather he used
other aspacts of Gandhian prograuma to integrate the hill
., .. 95.. Dsmi-official Stsart, Ac;ency O::mnissioner, Vizagapatma, dt.
29th August 1922, Pub. Dspt.., (Confid)., p.25, Also letter from St.emt, dt. lltb Sept., 1922, p.4.
96. Dsni-offici&l from F.s.s. Gsor()e, dt. Narsapatam, 28th ~~t 1922, PUb. Dspt., (COnfid), p.23.
97. · DatU. -official fran Stewart, dt. 27th August 1922, Pub. (Confid), p.21J Fortniqhtly Report, Pub. 02pt., OOM. (Strictly COnfid), dt. Ist Sept., 1922, No.7593-l, Public
447 P3QOO!lto into tha broader stre:un of anti -colonial politics of
that P3riod. Annapumiah wos to rightly remark that Raju '\las
not Imam to have any grG:lt oympat.hy with thG non-cooperation
prCX,Jrmcna. Hio subsequent confessions end CXJftduct show violanee.
But h3 patiently vaitecl and allowed rtCn'""CCJJPSl*ation to have its
td.nl. In t.ho wholo progr~ of Gondhi ji Conly) boycott of 98
courts and liquor cppcaled to bim. COnsequently, he caught both
tho Conqress leaderahip end tho Britiah rulora by ourpriso in '
August 1922 tm.en h9 oponly looted thea thre::a police stations and
declared a· t:tr of llb:!ration.
After looting the threa pol1e0 stations in Aug\1.«3t 1922, Raju ~nt
North-tat to Gudem t.i'toro h:3 c:Uebrctcd a fentival. l{is min_
object appears to have h::ml to obtain mre recruits. This took
him to 1.\'ortb-Bant to Ril.mnltota and then to the east to 99
Gongnra~e. Firat official engagement tdth him t::lS
affected. on 3rd of September 1922 by Mr. ~re, tzho tOS
londinq the newly dispatch~ Gov~ polica force em the
Onjeri ghat. In this mc:ounter the rebela cbtainO'l a cbcid::d 100
victory, killing one a:mstablca. Tha pollee forca tried to
mtablish contact again blt in vain, for 0 the locati'on and
following up of the gonq present(ed) c:armiderable difficulty
0".1inq to the nnture of the a:runtry, tihich (Gs) all bills and
98. Report by M. Annapurniah, cp.cit., p .. 234.
-- _.. ... - .... ~.... ----- -• -r -----·rr --- ___ ,... --r-·• -..---, p.4.
100. Ibid.
448 sp:arseness of the <Royal populatiOn nany of t.'hom (t:are) inelift!:!d
101 to ~p tho rebals mth::!r than the forces of Gov'erl'Ulent ••• a
The real victory for Raju was the daring smbush of British
officers at D.:llaanapalli Ghat on 2Sth September 1922. The
District ~istrate reported that "the p.\rty (police) warn
ambushed .in a very bad plcce. Rocks wara rolled on them fraa
abovo and the h3ad constable's ~clearly resulted from n ehot 102
fired fran nl.Bost directly llbova hima. 'rh3 rebels first allowed
the head of column to pass and then opaned fire en tho tuo
Dritioh Officers (SoJtt ~-ard and L.N. Hayter) who tare killed
i.rmmditely. This "made it cle£tr that their hostility (was) mainly 103
directed sqainat the ~lish:ren". Rnju himse}.f was said .to have
chclarcd _to a tnluk amotable, \iho was caught Vhon cpying en
rebelo, that nbs ~ not making war against the polico 104
subordinates but c.gninst the dorllS". This victory not cmly .
enhanced the prootige of the rebalo but also ned3 thG intentions
of Raju apparent' hs intended liberate Rampa if need b:l with a
prolonqed, organised guerrilla ~ in the hills. The
organisational skill of Raju had also becan3 apparent, for by the
end of September 1922 tho rebels had encountered the vclice force
-- t ,.. •• ____ ___..__._ r •••.,. ••~............., ........ ..,........__..,, • •• .-sur rrv• .. ..,_
101. Lettcar from R.A. Graham, Esq., c.s.I., I.c.s., Chief soct. to Gavt., to the ~. to the Gcwt. of India, Han. DEpt., dt. FSG., 16th sapt., 1922, No.7363-l, Public CConfid), p.7.
102 Letter fran C..A. Se.nderson, I.c.s., District fl.a.gistrat.e, Viz&qapatem, to the OU.ef Sec. to Govt.. dt • camp Narsap3tam, 25th Sept., 1922 (Daily Rsport), Pub. Dept., (confid), p.ll.
103. Fortnightly Report, 3rd. october 1922, No.8818-l, Pub., p.4S (Confid).
104. 03ily Report fra:n St.et:nrt, ~ Ck:mtnissioner, dt. 22nd Sczpt., 1922, Pub. nzpt., (Canfid) I p.8.
449
at four plJlc:es end d3fented it • 'l'hs Go'lemr.::nt lQS thus forced
to chanqe their tnctieo. Special ~nbar Pollee ~eo,
trainsl. in jungle 91crrilla v.arfare, tere brou;Jh in equipped with lOS
special mule trnnaport and pack wireless eats. · Thus started the
full-seale guerrilla ~ egainst British rule in tho hills.
Th:l rcb!)llion cxmtinucd for wo Y3tlrO. 'llr.l rcbols bad a. vory
strong socicl baso in tho hills. Even cftcr thoir regular
ot.nngth \aS reduead to 80 or 100 by September 1922, wheneiTQ!' the
reb3ls \'tmt. in the distrubad ragion their ectual tll1n!b:!r used to
mQU two to thr02 fold neatly drawing the locnl trib!:ll rrasoez
into their fold. Offici&lc reported that 0 tbo robelo eppoar to
hove mny l.oeal sy&t!!Xltbisero t!ho join forces mth them on 106
~t c:x:ccsiono and then disperse to their hat:3tl ...... "
.......... "'........... . ............. _.... ..... _..__.__ ... __ .. _______ .................... ~ ... ---105. Fortnightly Report, 3rd o:t., 1922, t<!o.8818-l, Pub.
(COnfid)J 17th Oct., 1922, t~.g()l7-l, Pub. tConfid)J Also Pub. Dspt., GJ:4., ~ 21, 1922, No.l066 (Mish Oct:ober 3, 1922, No •. 798 (Mieh D3c. 13, 1922, No.l046 (Mis).
106. Fort.niqhtly R3port, 17th Jon., 1924, No.l43-l, Public, p.l.
450 Raju t:O.S like a "fioh in tqtor enjoying tri.deapread popular
107 Support.,, to quote SUmit Sark.ar. In fact, to carry en ~illa
·,;.)~~ore from cbep \'DXI.s Raju Meded 0:0 things, unflagging
social suport from the tribal masos, and a continuous suply of
· daily provisions. 'lbroughout the p3riod it \!.'3.5 reported by the
officials that tho •locntion and folla.:~ing up" of the rebUs
presented c:cnsidorable difficulty C"Jing ttDStly to the ttnon
C'OO'peration" of the tribalo ttlo t::Jre inclined to help th3 rebels
rather thlln the (X)lice forces. 'Ibis, in turn, hGlpad the rebels
to bs highly .,nobile end elusive". Apart from superior mobility,
the rebels ware blessed with an intelig~SnCa network which was very
effective and accurate, espacially as OOl'ID!lred with that of the
Governmant intclli-Pnce cbpartm9nt and ta.s llDSUy nanned by tho ~& -
sympathizers in the villagas. Unleas they w:!I'e in the cbep
forests in the hills, the rebels ware sheltered n:DStly by the
vill.o.gara, i.o. whenever they had to rrove down to the plains.
'1he pioliee pursued the rebels like 'bloodllounds • on ll:'3MY
occasions but in vain, for they were often unable to obtain
107 • SWni t sarkar, • J:Opular. Kc::Nements 6 • Middle Class. Leadership in late Cal.onial India: Perspectives & Problems of a •aistory fran aslat1° (C&lcutta, 1983), p.Sl. t-'or instance tltlen .Raju attacked the G\dem Military canp on 26th OCtober 1923, it wan reported that the l:tlol.e of the village participated in it. See, M. Venkatarangaiya.op.cit., Vol.III, p.90, &.eney•s Report to the Chief Secretary to Gavt. of Madras for 27th, 28th & 29th Oct., 1923. Pub. Dept., <cxmfid), pp.316-17
108. Letter fran R.A. Graham, to the secretary to Gavernnent of India, Han. oep., dated PSG, 16th Sspt:eml:xtt 1922, NO. 7363-3, Pub. CConfidh Dsnl-official from F. Armitage, to R.A. Graham, Chief Secretary to the Government of Madras, dated Narasapatam, 18th &;pt., 1922, pub. (confidh Fortni<jhUy reports, 16th NoV. 1922, No. 9985-l, PUb., p.Sl7 1st Feb., 192) 1 No. 1189/A-1, PIJbl .. , p.4J 2nd Jtme 19241 No.l32/o-l, Pub., p.l71 Alao wae, t~ly Reports from Happell to the Chief SeJ. to the Governmant of Madras, dated 30th 03:., 1922 and 5th Jan., 1923, Pub. Dapt., (oonfidh Fortnighly Rzport, 1st Nov., 1922, No.973l/A-l, Pub. p.40
451 o:>rrect infortntion as to their ~t in timo to round them
109 up. Far Sitarama Raju, ~lar social base in tha hills tes, in
fact, a strategic link in bio line of d!:tfcnco, \!:hm'eas the ghats
\!:are stronq footholds for hin offensive attacks. Since .Raju ms
also ll anon of brain• his guerrilla tactics aided by an effect.iva 110
intelligence n3twork bee~ formidable • . In spite of careful planning and CJUerrilla tactics 1 the rebolo
did qat a severo blow from the Government forces ll'Ore than once.
In these circumstances the rebals GVentoolly fell b3.ck lJ!XXl thair
villago bases to recover fran tho shock and lick their munds in
peace. For instance, on Dacemb3r 61 19821 a party of about fifty
of t~nbar Police sucesded in attaching the rebels in a villaqo
called Peddaqeddapl.a. Four of the ~~l~ tl::!re killed, two were
C!lpurad and several ~. 'll'l3 rebels scattered into the hills,
bit ~re foll~ by another p>lice party of fifty. At midnight
in a rocky mtercourse in the billa, a hand-to-hand fiqht ensu~
for &b:>ut an h:nlr in which eight rebels vare killed 1 four
captuared end several mre 11Dunded. It was felt by the Governm::mt
that the •offensive r;xJWer of the gang has been broken 111
and t:.hoy 011n now have only n verty small supply of ammunition a. -. ........... .. . ··--109. For instance, eoo FatnighUy Reports, 2nd Dec., 1922,
No.l0746/A-l, Pub.,p.S3J 1st. Feb.,l923, No.U89/A-l, Pub.,p.4J Dsni-official fran F. Ar:mitage to R.A.Grahem, No.8 Narsapatam, 17th Sept., 1922, Pub. 02pt., (confid), p.42. To quote Hu:Jgins, «~It is clear fro:ll r.tr~ Sw.eney•s reports that a numbar of village munsifs are oot reporting the arrival of tho mbels in their villages and delib3rately suppressif\9 .i.nforrnrltion. Mr. Bl.1rl2 also reports that the rebals have b3en visiting villages all over the Q:dem taluk and right across the hills as far as Gurtedu and Val.amuru, but not a single report has bSen sent in ••• • WS9kly Report from J.R. HU":Jgins; Aqency Cmmissioner, for 30th January 1923, .Pub. Dapt. (confid >, p.lS6.
uo. Report on the Agency Rebellion for 24th o:t.,l922, from A.J. H&ppell, Officer Ccmnandinq, Agency Operations, PUb. Dept., (confid). p.79.
111. Fortnightly Report, 16th December 1922, No.ll200/A-l, Public, p.54.
' 4 52 'rhin 'tC!l to prove wrong. Tbe remaining rebels amazingly
succooded in elu:ling search by the police and catn9 back into tho
scene with an increased nurnb3r. 'lhis wruJ tnSSiblo. Within
a short timo b:!camo, as W3S officially mportcd later, the
villagero fed them and conceo.led t.hair novements fran p:llice ll2
sc:ll'ehes in the villages when tho rebels \GX'G in a bad shape.
Mil:J itary ~'t'esoion
To nlienatO the villaqera 10r tribal nassoa fran the rabsls,
rewards tiGre declared for .information, punitive taxes ware '""
Cosh awards t&re declared to catch the reools. For tho
appr~ension of ~lur:i r;~tar~ Raju &l)_~ut of Rs. __ l,SOO_, .. _for
Gem Gantham Dorn and Gaa Kal.loyn Dora of Gmnarla.palem Rs.l,OOO
e:tch, for •any one ~ has b::!3n actively a::mcerncd in the fituri
or for information which leads to the arreet of any one who has ,
bzon acti.voly concerned in the fitur:i •. Ra.SO, and for a .303 113
rifle or a ~lice musket RD. 50, were declared cs mmrds.
Massive "¢.vil preseure" was brought to b3sr U90D th&
' inhabitants of the villages to aliennte them from the rebals.
Pr:oc.lamation under section 15 of Police Act, a imopo3ing
--------------·---·-----·-·-·-·----··--·--·-··----·-----------------~ ll2. Fortniqbtly Report, lst Fcb.,l923, No.ll89/A-l, PUbllc,. p.4. It was reported that •After the two fights, ·the rebels have SCllttered ond . wo bavo not baen able t:.o trac:o their \lboreabouts ••• nany of the rebels are hiclinq in field aand\as used for guarding crops and are being fed by their relatives ••• ". Letter from J.R. Buggirm, Ag3ncy CCmnisioner, to the Chief Sec. to the Gavt., dated, waltair, 15th Dec., 1922, Wsekly Peport, Pub. ~., Cconficl), p.l64; cmd soma t:are reported hiding in the jungle near their harea. see, Ibid, dated 18th oec., 1922 (Repo.rt fran Happell), p.165.
113. Se:3, tzeekly Report f.rom A.J. flllppell. Officer camm.nding, ~ Oparations, for 28th Dec., 1922 Procloroation of J.a. HU;mins, Agency Camdssionar enclosed therein, Pub. Dapt., CCanfid), pp.l68-69.
453 additional (;X)lice on the (disturbed) area and holding the
b . 1\A inhabitants usp.a for tho cost a uas issued~ Spacial orders war·e
issued forfei ti09 the t~tt.as' whenever tho ~muttadars' were found
helping or harbouring the rebels.
with special ~s to the p.)lioo to put 11eivil pressurea an
P'!QP1~1~ For instance, the Makaram'mutta'was resumad and the 4.\b
rmu.ttadar' was imprisoned for helping the rebels. The village
munsif of Cbintampadu was convicted for 0 helping the fituridars
and failing to give the infomation he was bound to give•. r-my
nore (muttadars' ware suspended and sane like 'muttadar 1 of Gangaraz
Mad9ole and tbe villaqo musif of Damanapalli were prosecuted for \ll
helping the rebels. Perhaps it was felt by the Government that
breaking- the propP.xti·ed claas in the hills consistin~r of· I (\
'lmlttadars. mtifs end beadnen was easier than breaking the tribal
masses • non-o:x;,paration. ibis does not mean ordinary tribals
were spared from prosecutions, which ware rather arbitrary. For
instance, in February 1923 "eight villagers have OOC!n amvieted
and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment for harbouring &nd
giving false information inclwing a sentence ot 18 rronths oo a
rascal who harooured the rebels in GW.em and then gave Mr. Huma
false
---.. -~---·--•-••-••--•-•-•·--•-·---·-•-tt-wm•-•-•-----·-•-•-•r•-•----•-•Wrr-u-•r~~~t -~-•
ll4. Fortnightly ~t, 17th t·~ch 1923, t«l. 2816.-I. Pub., p.6. US. Telegram fran A.R. Knapp, dated Narsapatam, 30th
SG,pt.,l922.Pub. Dept., (c:onfid), w.lS-16; G.O.No.3081, Revenue, dated 28th Aug\L~t 1922, p.22 (By order of the Gollernment in Council)J Pub. D!.pt., CGovt. of Madras) dated 23rd Dec., 1924, No. 915 (Mis); Pub. Dspt.,(GoiTt. of Madras) dated April .30, 1925, No. 399 (Mis).
U6. Telegram_ to the AI;J3ncy Ca.mdssioner, - No.lSl6, D/22-l, dated 1st o:tober 1922, Pab. Dept., (oonfid), p.l8t G.O. No.l081, Revenue, dated 2Btb August 1922; Report from Happel.l, for 28th Dec., 1922 , Ses, P'.roclalmation enclosed therein, PUb. 03pt., (confid), pp.l68-69J l?Ub. ~t. (Gart. of Madras) dated, June 11, 1925, No. 566 CMis).
ll7. Report from Bappell, for 28th December 1922, cp.cit., p.l69.
454 118
information •. 'lb3so harsh sentonces oo the villagers ware also
used to create a scare sn:ong others in the villages. Imrmediately
after the prosecution of the 8 vlllagars, A.J. Happell, Officer
Ccmnandinq, Aqancy Oparations, addressed the .*'assembled
r ~~s~ village m.unsife and villa<Jers and explained to them at
length the meaning of punitive p:>lice and made it clear to tham
that this t-as ab3olutGly their last chance (to give infortra.tion ll9
regardinq the rebels for the police)". 'lhis type of santence3 120
continued till tho end of the robelion, ha#3ver, without much
change in the attitude of the villagars.
Simultaneously "economic pressure• was bt"ought to bear upon the
villages •frequented by the rebels• or upon those villages which
rendered assistance to ar ex>ncelaed the rebals in any W!ly. 'Ih9
best srothod adopted to put "econcxnic pressure• was quartering
--------------·------------·---------------------------------118. lbpert of A.J. Happal.l, Officer Ccmnanding, Aqency Operations, on the A9eflCY Reballi.on, for 24th Feb.,l923, Pub. Ds:pt., (confid), p.l99
ll9. Ibid
uo. See, Neport on l:'qancy Ope.rarions, for 26th Feb., 1923, Pub Dept., <oonfld), p.202. For failing to raport the tTOVements of the rebels, the Isradars of Badlaqondi, Tallapalem and 'Kirabu have bs3n esntencad to 6 tronths rigorous imprisonnent under Section 176 IPC. -
Report of swaney fran~ Yelleswaram, for 18th SEpt.,l923, Pub. rmpt., <confid), p.JOo.
en October 13, 1923, it was reported that 13 nore were convicted for harbour.ing rebels, suppressing infoi'n'Btion, or giving false information about the rebels. By 24th Oct.,l923, 13 nore ware amvicted with 6 rronths rigorous imprisomrent and fine of R5.25 to Rs.200. For DDre details see, Report of Sw:.!ney, from camp Narsapatam. for 13th Oct.,l923, Pub. 03pt., (oonfid), p.Jll.J Report from Swaney, for 22m, 23rd and 24th oat., 1923, Pub. Oq>t.., <confid), p.llS; . AlJ:1o sse, Report of S'..«eney, from caxrp Krishnaclevpst, for 19th to 22nd nec.,l923, Pub. Dapt (confid), p. 2311 Report of l"J. R. John Acting Dt. s. P. for 30th Nov., to 2B3 Dec., 1923, Pub.. Dapt. (confid) 1 p.235J Fortnightly Raports, dated 19th Nw. 1923, No.9462-l, Pub., pp.ll-321 dated 17th March 1924, No. 2796-1, Pub., p. 7.
455 oditional {X)lic:o under section 15 af tho Police Act on the
121 l.oallitieo ~ich b"3ro st.rong social basoa for the rebels. In
122 apito of the ~ty of the tribala tir-tlo crusl punitive t:axoo
tmre Q)llectcd, often with tlY.l une of brute force. '1ba .-:-.
~gni-tude of the •eecnanic pressure• exercised upon the poor L
trib3l nnosan ClUl bo casugcd frc:m.l the fact that "t:he estimated '
monthly coot of n forca of 100 men not inclwing officers Cws)
aa. 5;052-8-0 for the t3labar Sp:!Cilll Force and RD.. 4 1 312-8-01
for the F.!lrlt C.O.Ut SJ;XlCial Force. tnclwing officers the CXY.Jt
wuld b3 Rs. 6,353 for the M9laba.r Sp3oial Porco and Rs. 5,603
for the Eant Colst Sp!cial FOrce. 'Ihis estimate inclu:k!s the 123
pay, the travelling allct.:fai\Ce and the rations of the force•.
'l1l3 collection of tho punitive tax ~re often made at 9W1 point,
mstly onece in a 't133k. By 2m June, 1923, the tota.l amount
collected was Rs. 1, 76-l-9 i.e. out of Rs.3,200 for a period of
----Itt-• ·-·-· ·-· 1-W ·-·------..... - .............. Ill J&. I ................... _____ _
121. Official M3l'Orandum No.7l-s, <od 7th MU'ch, 1923, .tqmcy Report from R.A. Graham, Olief Sec. to Govt. for lst llnd 2m March, 1923, Pub.02,9t.Coonfid), p.20SJ Also see Govt. of Madras, G.O.No. 231, Public, datad 24th March# 1923.
122. Official Momcr&ndwn No.71-s, dated 7th Jfarch 1923, Ibid., p.206p Also ses Pub. 02pt., (Govt. of Madras), G.O.No.ll4 (Mio), pub. dated 6th Fob., l92S, and G.O .. No.23l 1 Pub. dated 24th Marcll,l923. 'lbe poverty of the inh.tlbitants of this re.;ion \lOG &':scri~ with ca::ar3 Cbtnilo in latter fro::\ I. Vcnkata &yanna Pmltulu, Sub. Divisional I c:lo.Gs Magiatrato Narasapatam, to the Ot.Me.g., ViBa98p!ltam, M.R.C. b!o .. 100/1923, dt. 7th April 1923, found in R. Dio. No. 1288/23 CI, dt. 25.9.1923, dt.collootorate Rscords, Vieagapat.am, pp. 19-21.
123. Letter from J.R. Huqgino, Aqe.ncy C<mnisoioner, to the Chiof Sec. to Govt. dated, C8q:J Narsapatam, 23rd March 1923, PW>. Dept., (confidl, p.21a.
456 124 125
two nonths; by llth June, 1923 it mo around Rs. 2, 764 and by l26
23rd June, 1923, it had reached Rn. 3,571. A total tbmand of
Rs.5, 761 t:aS imposed on the ~ division alone Cexcl\Xling
collections in t.he Gcdavari and Vizngnpatam districts) out of 127
which mly around .Rs. 1, 705 t:are due by 21st · July, 1923.
Md8i119 insult to injury, from August 1923 onwards, the punitive
tax was doubled on those villages which ware once subjected to
punitiw tllX, tllt W'3re viGitod. c:cond tim::l by Raju•a force nnd
prompt inform:ltion about bhieh t2s not sent to the nsareat (I
P/.o1ice posts in spite of tho J.mpo:li tion and collection of (....- ;_ 128 pur(;ive tax earlier. But, even this wenpon of "economic pressure•
proved futile and the Governemnt failed to break the popular non
cooparation of the tribal masses.
124. tetter f.ram J.R. Huggins, cp.cit., CW33ltly Report) dated, waltair, 2rxl June 1923, Pub. Dept.,(Confid), p.25o, Also see Ibid., dated 19th May 1923, (Ws3Jt1y Report fran t-Jal.tair) and dated 26th May 1923, (Weakly !\epert from Yellavarmn) Pub. OGpt., (Confid), p.249J R.Ois. No.l288/23 Cl, dt. 25.9.1923, Oistr ict Collectorate RIX:Ords, Vizagapatam, therein quoted pub. Dept., K3nO No. 4116-l, dt. 8th May, 1923, p.S2.
125. Letter from J.R. Huggins, cp.cit., elated C&mp Pam:.a, 13th June 1923, (\\~ly Report) Pub. Dept., (c:onfid). p.26S.
126. Ibid.,(W:!ekly Report) dated, waltair, 23rd June,l923.p;269.
127. Ibid., (~ly Reoport) dated, Wal.tair, 21st July, 1923 p.282. 1.'tla 111l41ttas and villages covered by the punitiva tax ware IDtuqedda, Gu1em, Dharakonda, Paddavals, Antada, Koyyuru and Makaram • Muttas • of the GUdem taluk.; the .Kilamkota •mutta' of the Pa.dle. talukJ 38 villages of Cbiem taluiq 6 villages of Golugonda taluk.; Vlzagapatam districtJ the Gurtedu and Pandropolu •muttas• of the Yellavaram talulq 16 villages of Yellavaram taluk; Velangi village of tbe Peddapur talulq Godavari district and Aannavarmn and Sankavaram villages near ghats. seee G.O. rib.ll7, Juiicial (Police), dt.24.3.1923; G.O.No.262, Juclicial (Police), dt.6.6.l923.
128. Report of StianeY dated, J<rishnadevipet, ll th August 1923, Pub. Dspt. (confid), p.286.
457 As a msult tho Governm:mt resorted to police · roprossion in the
villages. Almost any houso in tho villages of Rmnp!l hills \:!aS
subjected to 0 thorOU'-:Jh cenrches a. Th3 min taraqet!J ~re the
houses which funished brebals hranpower) to Raju and bbich W3re 129
inhabited by tho relati vcs of tho rabela.
Unfl.llgqinq Social SUpport of the Masses in the war
---------------------------------------Yet the tribnl mssss did not batrny the rebalo. On the othor
hand, they were mre sct.i ve in helping the rebels once the
repression was stepped up by the police J and en GCXlle crucial
cx:casians t.OOy even fought in the guerrilla war should& to
shoulder with the rebels and Sit.arama .Raju.
One such extraordinary instance W3s that of an~ attack an the post
of Gudem by Raju and his follO'iiOrs on 26th Oct.ob& 1923. C.E. 130
Swaney one of the off icera of the Malabar Police, reported that :
'1be rrost mttraordinary part of this attack is that all in Gudem village participated and rost probably nen fran other villages of the Gudon taluk. Guiem village is now almost deserted and it is boli ved that the male population ms joined the reb3la. 'lbe rclxll front at the t.iJ:m! of the &ttacJt. extended for 150 yards &nd at one time the air t:as singing with the flight of arrows ..... , Since this attack they c:ompletely diSAPJiX!8red.
Due to shear failure in achieving its objective the punitiw tax Ul
was discontinued in Sept:emb2r, 1923. For instead of breaking the
------~~~----·-·---------·--------------------·----------129. Ibid., for 19th, 20th and 21st Ck.'tober 1923, Pub. ~t., (oonfid), p.ll4J Also see Pub.Dapt., (Gavt. of Madras), G.O.No.400 (Mis), dated 14th May 1923.
130. Report .of Sweney, for 27th, 28th and 29th Oet.obar, 1923, Pub. Dept., (oonfid), p.317.
131. Report. from G.R.F. . 'nlttenham, Acting Chief 8ec. to GoVt. datd 27th Oct., 1923, Pub. Dept., (confid), p.331J Pub. ~., (Govt. of Madras), G.O. No.SOB, dt. 22nd Sept .• , 1923.
458 back of the rab3ls it along with mi.Uitnry repreznion forced tho
tribal uasses to c.:oms into tbe qJen and support th9 cause of the 132
rabals. Onlcos tho xebslo •b3c:o1l'e donporato• and made mistakes,
it taa felt by the Gcwerru1m1t that the reb31Uon could not bs
suppressed in roar future, nor could Rnju's social base in the 133
hills be 1.10akend. No \\Otldor it was the capture tmd ldlling of
-----------------------------------------------·-----132. It \lOG reported thnt "t!'3 ~ to m no rumrer tho end of thio bleinesa than wa were a year ago... It will b3 ~en by a pn-uoal of tho abovG p:ap:lrs thot as mu::h as pos!libl.e has been dona in the w:.y of p3rsundinq or ~lling ths inhabitants to exx>porote with tho authoriti03 in combating or betraying tho Rtlju and hi& followoro blt these efforts hava not really boon GUCCOoaful •••• • ~t fran G.R.F. Tottenham. Ibid.
133. Ibid.
134. Fo.rt.nightly reports. dated ~, 16th May 1924, NO.SJ/Q:~, .w.l4--:-15.r 2m .June .1924, _No.ll2/crl,. w.l6-l7.;. 'l'olegram from the Officer Ccm:nanding, At;pncy Op:lraticns to thE! QU.ef 5ec • Ul Gc::wt. • dated. 1 Na.t'BapD.tam 1 7th liJay 1 1924 1
PUbl. Dept., (confid), p.J74J Telegram from tho IrrJp3Ct.orGe.'1ernl. of Police, Ibid., dated, t".adraa, 8th M!.y, 19241 Manorandum from J~ «.rr. Kunchu t-t:non, i.e., Intolligence Pntrol for Sl Alwar Nayudu, to the Off iccr Ccmnanding, Chintllpal.li, Se:!dipalayam, dated 7th M!ly 1924, l\lb. ~t., (confid), P• 377.
In the .nloovo govornmant srour:ce it was recorded that Raju '\as shot <bad ••• wile eacapillCJ". ~,. it Wi113 proved & lie, for a photograph of Raju was published by Raghavaiah (provided by Bantian in 1930* s) in t$Uch 9W1 Ghot wounds on the che.<~t are eloorly visible. 'lbia author alco publlmed on eye witrtess account of the .killing and an altercation that ensued between Baju and the Major Goodall at Mapa village, tmf.lre tha reb:!l loader said to have demanded the prioonor of war treatment. 'Ihis account also says that Raju surrendered on his 0t1n to Major Goodall• s Jamadar of the East Coast. Special Police to save the tribal msses from the militctry suppression but was shot dead by the JG"Ded.ar at the orders of Major Goodall.
Sea, v. Ria9havaiah, Tribal Revolts (Nellore, 1971), pp.44-47. '.this {tlot.ograpn of dead .Raju t:as also published in his edited book, Tribes in India, Vol.. I, (Nmf Delhi, l969).
459 Baju on 7t:h f·hY, 1924 ~ich ultimately gave a doath ~ to the
134 anti -colonial war in the hills.
'Ibus the rebellion dem:mstrated its solid social basa among
tribal masses, but not so nu:h a11Cn9 muttadars. Fran the
beginning, to quote Henderson, District Magistrate, Vizagapatam
that '*bobat of tbe muttadars sean to be trying their best to sit 135
on the fense•. evan though tho munsifs and muttadaro supported
and hslp2d the rebols tmen t:.ha rebellion was at its hsight, t:hay
quickly h9lped the police to find out the reOOls 1 in so.10 cases
they caught ths rebels and in one case they even .killed a reb31,
once the rebels' resistance cracked in 1923-24 under the pressure 136
of police repression and encounters. 'ibis was not so in the cnse
of tho basic tribal masses, for till the end t.hoy supported the
rebels and ll.9Ver betrnyed tbe cause of Raju. In fact, •it had
pJzzlcd ENerY officer on active duty in the Fituri (area) how
this miserable looking populntion has parsiated· in their attitude
of non-cooperation not withstanding the vary considerable
pressure and discomfort of parties of police and the Assam Riflea 137
noving all ewer the country•. Ultinntely it w:1s a clash bstt:3en ----------------·-·-_..,..II ·- 8 I ----~--- lawt I PI 1111 PI f I • ttiWM._
135. Dami-official fran C.A. Henderson, I.c.s., District ~.aqintrnte, Viugapatam, dt. 9th Sept. 1922, Pub. ~t., (confid), p.40.
136.. For instance Gam r.allayya Oorn was captured only when three village munsifs had informed the police an 17th Sept., 1923. See, letter from J .R. Hu39ins dt. wal.tnir, 22n:i Sept., 1923 (weekly Report), Pub. ~t •. (confid~, pp. 301-302.
Yendu Padal was killed by one munsif and his supporters on 26th !ot:1y, 1924. ~ \'Jeekly Report by ~, dt. camp, Olintalllpudi, 31st Mciy, 1924, Pub. Dept., (confid), p. 3841 Also see, Press eatmuniqua, dt.. emnp, ()::)tacanr.md, tho 5th Juno 1924 in cp.cit., Part VII, pp.336-37.
137. Ratherford on tho Clauses of Pampa Fituri, in M. Venkatarangaiya, op.cit., VOl. III, p. 368.
460 tho hill msaeo, who articulated thoir grievances into a
rob3llion, and the oolonial rulers.
!hroughout this period, it was the villagers and in fJ(XD3 c:a.ses
village munaifo headmen and muttadars t'ho ensured a constant
supply of daily provisions to the rebels. Initially, tha Agancy
C<mnissioner folt that •the villagers knew that the fitur1 t.'a&
intended and ~re supplying it with food as it passes through,
psrhaps, willingly, perhaps under compulsion • 'lbere is, llO'IIever,
no general grievance tihich tlOuld mke them support the fituri 138
\".'holeheartedly". 'ltlese assunptions ware to be proved t~.rong by the
later course of events and the official enquiries into the causes
of too rebsllion. ay· the end of Septe::nbar, 1922, in fact, it wa8
_established bayonet doubt that. there. did exist a deep .. rooted
d.islilm of lllld antangonism against colonial rulers in the hills,
which, in turn, hcl.psd the rebels to cxmnand the "*tolehearted
support nnd loyalty of the tribal msses as wall aa propertied 139
groups in the hills. ConsequenUy not only the tirbal masses bu.t
also the village munsifa ware seen •pretty active" in supplying 140
provisions to the rab3ls. Th&e was a harmonious relationship
--------------------------------------------~~~---138. tetter from F .w. Stewart, Aqency Carmissioner in-charge to the Chief Sec. to Govt.. dated camp, Narsapat.am, llth Sept., 1922, Pub. Ofpt., Cconfid). p.S (Rama Fituri 1922 Daily Report).
139. Rutherford on the causes of the Rram:pa Fituri, in M. Venkat.aranqaiya, op.cit., Vol.III, R;>.36S-70: Pub Dept., (Govt. of Mtldras) G.O. No.974 (Mia), dated 21st Nov. 1922J G.O. No. 924 Ct~s), dated lOth NoV., 1922; G.O. No.499 (Mis) dated, 16th 19241 G.o. No. 894 (M.is) dated, 20th oec., 1924; G.O. No. 108 (Mia) dated, 2nd Feb., 1925 CPa~s recorded)J G.O. No. 402 (Mia), dated 30th April, 1925.
140. For ~ instances sea, Lletter from Stewart, Agency CQmlissioner in-charge, to the Chief See. to Govt. dated 23rd sept., 1922, PUb. Dept., Cconfid>, see case Diary No. 13, Chinta.palli, pp.B-11.
46l ~ween the rebels and the villngaro. tbt .rurprisingly, Sitarar.3
Raju nover pumitt¢d •looting of villaqas, although d~inq 141
oupplies for a d!ly or ~'0 fr<Xl villa.g3s h:t p:lSml through". And 142
this probably increased hia "hold on the vill.&~s·.' ~ at th2
might Of dasparation, R!ljU OOUld not allaH the looting of the
countrysid3. For instnnce, when he \fOB in need of n9W recruits,
hG went to t<ond&palli on 2rd to 4th May, 1924. It 't.tls reported
by sano of the cnptured rebels to tho Chief Intelligence Officer
that Raju wont to Kondapalli •to negotiate with a number of
inhabitants of that villnqe U1o are either old fitw:idaro and
dacoita ar the <bscendents of such for them to join hio gnng.
'lbny had apparently mda previous overturoo oot wanted to be
allowed to loot and rob the countryside which the Raju '«)Uld not -----143 - - - - - - -- -
ngrce to•. 'Ibis E»tplaina a strong bond that mdGted between Raju
and the villagars which gave amazing strength to the rebals.
ConseqU!!ntly, \dlenevor, and t,1\erever, the: rebals camped •SS'V'*-rnl
village munsifs and n number of villagera were aloo <seen} with 14~
tho gang•, nupplying food as well and manpower.
145 San5Umss the muttadars also furnished fo:xl suppllen to RajuJ but
141. D3ni-official S~rt,op.cit., dated, camp Viusgapatom, 12th Sept., 1922, Pub. Dept .. , (Confid)' p.35.
142. Ibid.
143. See, Press ccmnuniqtB, dated Fort St. George 16th June 1924, issucad by N.B. Marjoribanks, Acting Chief sec. to Govt. in Rampa Oiaturbancea, Part VII, (from 1st JanUilry to 30th June 1924) Section A - Press Cc:mmunique, Pub. Dept., <oonfid), p. 338.
144 • Report m the Aspnc.y Rebollion from: A .. J. FJ1lppell , Officer Cammldiru.J /tqltncy Operations, for 7th o:t., 1922, Pub. ~t., (c:onfid), p.SS.
145. Letter from F.W. Stewart, Aqency C<mnisaioner i.n-charge, to the chief ~. to Govt. dated, camp Narsapatam, 23rd Sept. 1922, Daily Report (C!aso Diary No. 13, Chintopalli), Pub .. Dept., (Confid), W• 9 and ll.
462 they often later reported to t:.bo Gavernmant that thio was done
146 . under cx:mpu.lsion. M \13 tnve t;x)intcd out all mrlier, unlike
villagera the dclminant group oomprising of 'muttadara ~ OOB.~n
ond munsifs was,in fact, sitting on ttw fence to jlll.q) to the &lfo
side if the reb3llion failed in the fnce of polic~ repression. When
the rabollion wns ot ito height and as long llS the z.-ebela o:Nld
retain their thrust aqainst pollee forces, 'muttadara' and village
munoifo ~o 0 protty active• in supplying and supporting the
re~la. HC1.'/eVer, once t.'le rebels• (X1.'1er \r:a& on the tone, these
daminnnt groups tJOre quick in jumping to the other side of the
fonco. 'Ibere were nany inst.ances of village munsifs being -..,:ary
active in bringing some rebcla for surrender and passing on
information on tho .. mbel.m:Nert13nt.s .. leading .. to the arrest of 147
tmportnnt lend9rs. For instance, Gmn Mallayya Dora could be f
captured easily tbcn ~ was in the house of a Kaldn Dot"tl girl at
Nndimpalcm village oil 16th Septertlber, 1923, tor infomation ws 148
pased on by 111 threo village munsits• to the police. 0 BUt they
146. For inst.oncs, see Report frO!ll the Dharakonda Muttadar on 13th o:t. 1922 to Mr. Saunders, Intelliqcnco Impcctor, in R::!port an the Agency Rebellion, from Happall, op.cit., for 15th Oct.,l922m pub. Dept., (confid~, p.66; Report of the Deputy Tr.hsil.dar, Malkanagirl, to the Aqency Ccmnissioner, dated 13th June 1923 in M. Venkataranqaiya, op.cit., Vol. III, p.387.
147. Reports fran A.J. Bappell, Officer Ccm:nanding, Agency Operations for 7th NoV. 1922, PUb. Dept., (confid), p. 95J Report for let oec. 1922, Pub. Dapt., (o:mfid), p. l21J tetter fran J.R. Huggins, Agency CO'nmissioner, to tha Chief Sec. to Govt. ~tair, 15th Dec., 1922, (We3kly Report) Pub. Dspt., (confid), p. 164J Report from Happell, for 19th Dec. 1922, Pub. ~t., (confid), p. 165~ Report from C.E. ~ney for 13th June 1923, Pub. (confid), p. 264; Relport fr~ Upandrn Pat.naik, Intelligence Inspector , Ra.javc:xm.angi, to the Officer Can:nanding, Agency Operations, dated Nar.sapatam, 6th May, 1924, in f.J. Venkatarangaiya, op.cit., VOl.IU, p.400.
148. Report of Sweney fran Rrishnadevipet, for 23rd Sept. 1923, Pub. Dept.,. (confid), p.302r Also see Letter fran J.R. Huggins, cp.cit,., dated 22ni Sept. 1923, 'Pub. (confid~, p.JOl.
453 (three village munsifs) wre anxious that. their share in the
matter ohould be kept confidential and rewards be gi,Jen cnly at 149
the close of the fituri •, bacause they were afraid of openly
disassociating from the rebellion t-Jhieh taG still going strong in
tho hills. 'l'be killing of Ymdu Pildal was also the same sad
story of 'elite• betrayal. The village munsif and his henchmen
of Pada Jeruvu near Peddavalasa captured and brough Padal' s con
to the ofticials on 2ltd May 1924. ~ Padal after hearing this
came to the village to rescue his son he was killed by them en 150
26th M.:ly, 1924. In thio caoc the dominant groups opsnly bslp:xl
the Goverrutmlt, for tha! rebsllion had been almost crushed.
'!bus the unflagging social support of the tribals and a I
continuous cupply of daily provisions from the villages hal~
Sitarrue Rilju to carry on his guerrilla war from deep \\IOCXls to
establish "Swarajya• in the hills. Evan qeographica.lly speaking
thG social base of Sitarama .Baju a.'ld his follaNers was vary wide,
for the rebellion had its social roots not ooly in the .AJr-ncy
division b.lt also in th~ oorder villages of Vimgapatam and
Godavari districts. In !>:'.arch, 1923, a Gallernment proclamation
clearly identified the geographical base of Raju in order to
impose pmitive tax. 'nle mutt&s of I.Dtugedda, <.b:lEm, Oharakonda,
Pcddavalasn, Antada, Koyyuru and Makaram of Gudem taluks, the
Gurtedu and Pandropo1u m.uttas of Ynllavarcm taluk and the
Kilamkota mutta of Padwa tal uk ware declared as the nost ' ____ • .....,_ .. _ _.,.................. l ............... --··--~ .. ~--·-·-·-----·-.. ·-··----------... -.
l49. RepOrt of sweney for 23rd Sept. 1923. Pub, 02pt., (confid), p. 302.
150. W82kly Report frtn ~ey, dated, camp Chiiltalapudi, 31st May, 1924, Pub. (confid), p. 384) Also see, Press C<mnuniqua, dated camp OXacamund, 5th June 1924 in op.cit., p.336J Fortnightly Report 1\lo. 132/o-l, dated C8r£q? ootacamund, 2txl June 1924, pp. 16-17.
454 diat.ruOOd arcns. 1hls proclamation further identified a total of
38 v1llaqea in Gudem talult, 16 villages 1n Yallavo.rmn taluk., 6
villabves in Gol~onda taluk of Vizagapatmn diatrict and Velanqi
villa<J(! of .Pa1dopur taluk, Go:lavari district, as ttDSt actiw in . 151
helping Sitarama :Raju. \.
Lastly it is essential to f.X)int out that in oour:na of· the bloody
prolonged gu3rrilla warfare, f.IQ'.n2 individuals fr<rll. ex-nuttadara,
outlatm, l.nndhold~s, and b:lditfl joined the rebel group due to
their om grievances ngainst colonial authority. It t.OUld be,
hQwoVQC, mi.oleading to charlloterise the rebellion in terms of the • 152
inter ants. of these individuals, as has been done by David Amold.
For tho progr.t::Wm3 of Raju wan never • hcqomoniaed • . by the
·aspi-rations- of- t.twse- individunla. •!bey ett.hru:- . cont:.tnued to oorvo
th~ rebellion by GUbcrdinating their pttsonal or group interests
or faded out in cource of the rebellion 'aJ disasoociat.ing from
it.
On3 example of this <as thnt of M:lttadam Virayya Dora, 1d10 had
tried his luck rather \msuccO!,•sfully to restore his claim. to the
G\11(.1U! Patavidi r:tttta by joinin; the La:Jarni rifling of 1915-16.
He Md since them b:!en detained as priooner under Regualtion I.t 153
of 1819 at Vi:danagarnm. In l922, Virayya Dora e:.u:apsd. fra:n
prloon and tried to muster support for his claim over the mutta,
bUt in vain. aa was captured and kept at the .Rajavcmn'lnqi police
--· ·--~~-U-1 -··----·------------------------------------151. G.O.No.l27, Ju:licial (Polica) dated 24th tech 1923, CRampa Disturbancotl-Act v of 1861 - section 15 -.Additional Police -Notification iGsued) (Sy omer of the Govt. in Council), Pub,. Dept., (confid) 1 p.2l6 •
152. David Arnold, op.cit., for instance, p. 137.
153. Letter fran R.A. Graham, I.c.s. Chief secretary to Gcwt. to tho Sec. Govt. of India , l1an3 [);opt. , dt. PSG ,1 16th Sept., 1922, No. 7363-3, Public.
465
otatio.'"l from tsttn-re he \\t\e released by Sitarama Raju oo 24 154
Auc,JUSt, 1922. "It -wao at first supposed• bl' tho gavernm=nt that
"the object of the rising might be to restore him (Virayyo. Ddora)
to his mutta. It appears, hcMQver, that he was not at all willing
to go with the rebellious band t~ soon separated fran it tmd was lSS
recaptured•. R!lju r."'igbt have reloancd Virayz•a Dora with the hope
that hs would join him in tha cause, or, m.:>rc probabaly, he might
have bean influenced b}r the "public fe3ling in Gudem mutta t:Mt
Muttadnm Viroyya Dora was not being trollted fairly (and released
him) from custody at Rnjavatmangi where his case has been posted 156
for trial on the 24 Augu.st •. Ult:i.mately, though Virayya Dora
.. _failed tp ~gciat~ _wi~ Raju•o ~lion, the rebels' g30ture of
releasing him frM the police lock-up probably onhanced Raju' G
preotiqe a::1 a • justice giver • among the psople in that area. It 157
certainly enabled him "to raise recruits fran that mutta•. It is
interesting that in spite of Government's s.paculation that
Virayya • s rescue was . aim.ed at restoring him to his mutta,
Sitarama .Raju did not resort to restorative justice of this. sort
which would bave ultimately forced him to qat involved in
internal biekerinqs of r.nuttadars and thet'eby 'endanger the wider
cause of anti-a:>lonialism. In other words, Baju did not ...... ___....,......_ ___ . ___ _._.._,....,.,.. _________________ _ 154. Ibid. Letter from F.w. stewart, l.c.s., Agancy Catmissioner,
to t.'le O'lief sec. to Gol1t., dt.. camp, Naroapntam, 11th Sept., 1922, .Pub. Oept .. ,(confid), p.4J Also see, Fortnightly Report, Govt. of Madras, (Strictly catfid> dt. lst Sept., 1922, NO. 7593-1, Public.
155. letter from Grabnm dt .. 16th sept .• , 1922, No. 7363-3, PublicJ Fortnightly Pql()rt.dt. lst &!pt., 1922, No. 7593-1 Public.
156. Letter from Stewart, dt. llth sept.., 1922, Pub. Dept., (confid), p.4.
157. Ibid.
466 canpranisa with ~1uttadars to get tht.lir support. ~ aimed at
DDbilising these al.ements by integrating their grievances with
the wider cause of lil:m'ating Ratt;Ja tribals from the Bbritish
yoJte. 'Ibose \\\ho got involved in the wider cause joined the
rebellion and others like Virayya Dora \fiho had not beleived in
it, left .Raju.
Political Ideology of the Rebellion
Turning towards the character of tho reb3llion and its linkn with
nationalist ideology in th3 plains, it is essential to go through
• the scattered opinions oo the objectives of the r.abellion, to
form n vague picture of tihclt the rcools and .Raju actually st.cxXi
for in their upriaing again.~t Britioh Rule.
Initially tha Officials h2ld diverse views regarding the object
of tho fituri. According to ~. it was to t!3tablish Raju •ao 158
king of ~an, bin kingdan extending throughout Gudem tnluk". He
was said to have addressed a maating of vilLage headmen,
•demanded a poll-tax of four annas a read and said that he was 159
going to establi!~h his Odn kingdan•. Sane of the rebels captured
in the e!lrly rtDntlu:i of the roballion were reported to ho-w aaid
that "'the Govermmnt ban not done jU3tlce to Rttju by not
recognising him no lting af Gl.:dem" and that., hence, they 160
sympathised with :P.o.ju. !-wever, some of the off iciala ...... ·-· ... " ............. --------·--·---~~·-·---·--·-·-------
158. Letter from F.W. St:e,;art, to the Olief Sec. to Govt., date:i ewnp, Nar~patam, llth sept. 1922, Pub. O:::tpt., (a:>nfid), p.4J Letter from R.A. Grnham, to the sec::. Govt. of India, Hane Dept., dated PSG,. 16th sept. 1922, !ib.7363-3, Public tconfid), p.6
159. Dani-official Stewart, Agency camdssioner, Vizagapatam, dated 29th August 1922, Pub. Dept., (confid), p.2SJ Daniofficial, C.A. Hs."''dcrson, op.cit., dated, lrd &apt. 1922, p.29.
160. Demi-official St.emtrt, dated 12th Sept., 1922, Pub. Dopt., (confid), p.35
467
had a different views ol! tho moti't~ of the rebelliorl. Ao::«3rdil1tj
to sccro intelligence sources "tho :t'ol:»ls w-do said to havo· troved
tQoiards JS')'PQX'G via Arutntngir! W1d ... • (there was) rumour that
the Raju has raiood this eh<Yd to got guns and am:nunition for non
cooparation in norther India, nnd tl1o.t he intends to mke tracks 161
acros!l tho CGntral Provinces \1han ha 009 got enough". Thc!3o
contradictory opinions \'."ere the rmtural outcane of tho ini tiQl
b:.:railcisi'msnt mld "cxxn.?lcto ignorance of tho m:.>tiva!l and 162
objectives of the gang", for neither Raju nor any of the rebels
were vocal about their object! ves. CQ'lsoquently, the Governrr.ont
oaems to haw txU.ei ved ~oours and t11~ht. thn~ -~ ~~!-:ion 1-i<lG
•n sort of quani-raligious megalomania Which actuatP.d the 163
Pachipenta fituri•.
'lhc miot started clearing alee tl:le intelligence officers began to
probe into the <:aWJ03 of tho rebellion. It wam noti- felt that tho
leader W3.s, in foct, "actuated by ideals inopircd by tho non
cooperation movement•. It was alleged in the M:drna ~ilative
Council that o SUb-Inspector of Polics h.:1d earlier reported that
a non~ator W3B preaching rebollioo 1n the hills hut the
161~ Dani-offieial, !'.S.s .. r:Jeo~a, Dated, ~capatar:~, 28th .A~st
1922, .Pub. Dept., Cconfid), p.2l.
162. D::mi-otficW C.A. lknderson, dated lrd. Sept.. 1922, Pub.
Dept., (confid) 1 p.29
163. Ibid.
·civil authorities had allOWEd him to go <Jl.- 'lhls t;reachet as no 164
other than Sitarama Raju. In February 1924, answering a
question by s. Satyamurti, a Member of the Madras Le;Jillati ve
.CounCil, Sir Arthur Knaw, Hm:e Ml!!lnb8r in the COUncil, was quite
categorical in character ising the rebellion. •'I'n9 cause... ia ,
undoubtedly to a very large extent the activities of a certain
party (Raju) \lfilich has been advocating non-<XX"Jperation with
GoVern~mnt •. ArrS "it is ttue that there were oompaint1 xegardi.ng
the treatment of latourers at the hands of certain dffieero.
It is MSO true t})at there were c:omplaints in connection with
podu cultivation. But these ccrnplaints had nothing to do with
the le.'!lder o! the fituri, RIJ.ju, who waa neither oppressed by
-----··-------------------------------------------------
164. Madras .r..eqislative COUncil Proceedings, 1:bird Session, 13th
Nov. , 1922 , Vol. IX, NOS • 1 to 5 , p. 538 •
our Off ioors nor has anything .to do with [X>du cultivation, and 1
attrib.&te his action to t.'le political mot.ivas to which I have 165
already aUuied". (anpbassis added).
In a personal letter dated 16th SqJtember, 1922, wcitten to his
friend in '1\lni, ~viting him to join the rebellion, Raju had
written that. "I co.~ced tnttle ••• thinking that battle is 166
inevitable in tho interests of the CO\mtt'y'o w.:2cty"" 'l11e rain
object of tho rebellion was said to tmvc been the c;tablishment
of S\1orajya. Thi~ fnct w.ln C!)rroboratcd by th~ testimony of
a. Sub-Irnlpxt.cr C. Shrini va.sarao, in the court at the trial of
the rebels. Others deposed before the court that Raju had
delivered the mesoagc of S\ara.jya to his lloutinents, the Gam 167
Brothers. AnnaP'.lrniah in hio report to Gandhi_, reproduced a
discusoion that Raju had with e non-o:lOper.ator in 1\."lnavaram, East 168
GcXtavari district on 18th Aprll, 1923, tbich clearly brings out
the political objective of the rebellion :
Non-coopP..rator. : \>lith tibet object are you ru."'1.'1ing this cn..,;ni gn ?
Raju : For the freedan of our mtherland.
Non-cooperator : By what mMns ?
Raju ' Unless wa m<J3 war against the bureaucracy we cannot win &arajya.
---·-~·-·-·-··-·b-----------------------------------------------165. Madras Is]islati ve Council · Proceedings, lat se:J:Jion of the second t.eqislatiw Council, 5th Feb. to 9th Feb., 1924, VOl. XVI, Nos. 1 - 5, p. 418
166. Dem.i-official F. Armitage, I .. G.P. to R.A.Grahllll, Chief Sec. to Gcwt. No.8, dated, camp, tmeapatam, l7tll Sept. 1922, enclosed a translated letter therein. Pub. ~., (confid), p.42
167. Report ~ r-t. Annapurniah, op.cit., p. 235.
168. Ibi<lJ Also acs Dantuturi Vcnka.ta Rama Raju, op.cit., pp..17l-74J 1\rrlhra Patrlkn, 21 Jt.pril 1923.
Non-cooperator
Raju
Rllju
470
: Do you really belci ve you would thus cr-t &.-.urajnyn?
' Undoutcdly, in two yearn wa do gst SW'arnyaja.
: Hew do you hope to 93t Swarajnya. in b:o years ? Io it through your present m&ula ?
: Yes, ~tically yes. I have a <:JrGat following ; there is no dearth of In2fl for m:l but I want a:rr:nunition. I am in S04Ch of that.
He wao so confident of winning tho war that h3 was reported to
ha.ve said t:hnt 11he did not care if the Govarnm:mt sent lakhs .. , . . of : troops aqainot him, he had followers all over In::Ua and was
169 quite prepared to deal with any forces oent by the Governm:ant.
lhus, the objective of the Manyam rebellion was much wider than
that of establishing 11his kingdan in Gudem" actuated •only by his 170
ambition to set himself up l1:3 an :;.ndcpcndcnt chief •. It wtlS
undboubtedly anti -colonial in character and thereby poll tical.
Neither the tribals nor Raju were isolated from tho major
political movements sweeping the plains. 1hore ware instances
of • Prachllrakas • (propagandnists) , eant by tho Congress, spreadinq
the progrmro~e of non-o."X>peration in the ~ region and also
the G:mdhian promi.so of 'Swaraj in one year', at a timn when non-
169. REport oo the Agan.cy rebellion for 7tlt ();t. 1922, sent by A.J. Happsll, Officer Co:n.-nanding, Agancy ~at:ions, Pub. Dept.., (confid), p.sa
l70. Madras Legislative Council Proceedings, 13th ~. 1922 , Vol. IX, Nos. 1 - 5 , p. 543.
471
cooperation m:werrent was rad.icali.sing the nationalist politics 171
in the plains. In tha Ol'Jll\9 period Raju was seen actively wotking
among the tr ibals for the spread of khnddar, anti-drink campaign, 172
estalishme.'lt of panchayat courts, etc., of COngress progran:mes.
It is not at all surprising to ses such a militant nan raising
slogans like •Gandhi-ki-jai • after looting the Chibntapalli
Police StationJ and at ~ other ocassions he •spoke highly of 173
Gandhi •. 1his IIX!.'lnS that Raju was in "close ocmnunication with 174
the plains• and the min currents of the nationalist D:DVen'l:3nt
led by Congress. In course of his dicusssions with tile Deputy
'Iahsildar, t<lalkanagiri en 11th June, 1923 he reported to have
said after praising Gandhi that •violance is necessary. Be t~ill
continue his canpaign till • swaraj • is established. He has no
faith in the (British} Governtn2nt. He desires to visit
Rajahmundry and other plains villages to test if he could ~t
sufficient following, mite a bold stand against G;Jovernment
------------------------------------------------------171. Daily Report on i\<pncy Rebellion for Oth Oct., 1922 fran A.J. Happell , Officer Caltn.<lnding, Aqency Operations , Pub. Dept. (o::mfid), p.59J tetter fran T.G. Rutherford dated 22nd Augus.t 1924, in M. Venkatarangaiya, op.cit., Vol. III, p. 3661 The Hindu December a, 1921.
172. M. Venkatarangaiya, Ibid., p.366; Demi-officia1 fran F.s.s., George, dated Narsapatam, 28th August 1922, (upto 5th Ck:tober) Pub. Dept., (confid), p.23; !A!tter fran P.W. Stewart, op.cit., dated, Narsapatam, llth sept. 1922, p.4; Gavt. of Madras, Pub. Dept., dated Novembi!:r 21, 1922, No. 974 (Mi.S)J December 20, 1924, No. 894 (Mis); Feb. 2, 1925, No.108 (Mis); Madras Legilative COUncil Proceedings, 13th Nov. 1922, Vol. IX, Nc&. 1 - 5, P•. 538
173. Letter fran Stewart, op.cit., dated llth Sept., 1922, p.4; Weekly Report from Huggins, dated 23rd June 1923, enclosed report fran Deputy Tahaildar Malkanagiri, to the Agency Omnissioner, dated 13th Jtlle 1.923, Pub. Dept., (eonfid), p.270.
174. Madras Legislative Council Proceedings, 13th ~., 1922, Vol. IX, Nos. 1 - 5, P• 535.
472 175
forces. He hopes to get help from PUnjab". Ono Intelligence
Off icar 1 Mr. saunders 1 quoted an interesting report from the
Dharakonda ~t.adar oont on 13th Q:tober, 1922, in which it WllS
said that "Raju was talking of m::wing on towards Gurtedu,
Addatigala, Rampa Chodaua.ttmn and the Papi Hills, then to Bastar.
After touring in Bastar that he would return wi tb a large a.n:ey 17G
and establish • swaraj • •.
If not in the interior, at least in the surrounding plains
villages there waro m::my "non-cooper&tora11 who "without doubt" at
heart sympathised with Raju' s rebellion and his objective of 177
One non-cooperator and a khaddar
propagandist, Shri Rai Jagpathi varma Raju of Pithapurmn,
Ga:lavari district, observed in his interview in Ck.tobar 1922 ~
with an officer of c.r.o. Special Branch that "several
influential estate-omers and others living in and around the
Agency were expected to help the present fi turi rebellion for
political reasons; b.lt Alluri Srirama Raju, the leader of the
rebels, precipitated natters by bringing it amut tefora the
materials for a general republican nDVIE!ment in the country was 178
ready". Tthe people fran the plains villages may not have
actually participated in the rebellion, but at least they were in
sympathy with the cause of the rebels. Th9y hslp::d the
rebels materially, for it was reported in the ----.. ··-··· ............. ____________ _ 175. weekly Report fran Huggins, dated 23rd J'une 1923, op .. cit,
p.270; Also see DT!i-Official from G.T.H. .Bracken, District Magistrate, Godavari , to R.A. Graham, Qlief Sec. to Govt. dated 26th Oct., 1922, Pub. 03pt.. (confidl, p.l49·
176. Report on Agency Rebellion for 15th October 1922, fran Bappell, Pub. Dept.. (c:Onfid), p.66.
ln. DeDi-official Bracken, Dt. Magistrate, Galavari, op.cit., dated 26th o:tober 1922, p.l49·
178. C.I.D. Note by J. Moore, dated lith OCtober 1922, Pub. Dept., <eonfid), p.l42.
473 Goverlll'IXmt files that Raju' s supply of country 9Uns and
anmunition came fran •hio non-<::XX>peration friends in the Gcdavar:i 179
district •. So Raju was not showing ~ely the •ranantic 180
idealism of his class", when he claimed to ba gathering follmvers
all over India. This claim ~ at least his basic
understanding of the political developments in the plains.
If we integrate the "folk tradition" with other rraterials on
Manyam rebellion, it 'IIIOUld appear that Raju wao not ooly aware of
the tetionalist rrove.msnts under the lendership of
Gandhi/ COngress bUt was ll'OSt probably in touch with the terrorist
novement in India. It was observed in the official sources in . February 1924 that Paju was • a member of SCXI19 calcutta secret
Society which has) engaged in the manufacture of bc:mbs, etc. and
that having ocine under the notice of the police, he returned to
his native haunts, and the Non~ration M::Nement being in full
swing at the time. He, with the help of Noo-ccoperation friends,
decided that stir (ring) up the Ag'ency villagers muld be a good 181
rove as regards snbarrassing Gcwernment". He claimed m:>re than 182
once that •oo had followers all aver India •, and he hoped to get Ul 1~
help from "Punjab", "Central Provinces" as also from the
------------·----------------------------------------------179. Report for 9th July 1922 fran Krishnadevipet sent by C.E. sweney, Pub. Dept., (confid), p.l42.
180 • David Arnold. op .cit., 135.
181. Weekly Report from 5Waney dated 9th Feb. 1924, Pub. Dept., Cconfid), pp 351 - 52.
182. Report on the Agency Rebellion for 7th O:t. 1922, by Happell, op.cit., p.S9e
183. See Footnote No. 175~
184. Dani-Official, F.s.s. George, op.cit., dated 28th August, 1922, p.23~
474 185
adjacent plains villages and regions like •aastar*' and towns 186
like 0 Rajahmundry11• According to popular tradition in course of
the all In:lia tour ~ich R.llju undertook to acquint himself with
conditions under colonialism, he attended me underground
revolutionaries' maeting in Chittagong and was convinced of . the
necessity of waging armed struggle to llbsrate India fran 187 ':\
British rule. Tf'is conviction of Raju was likely to have been
stroo~ened. further by the widespread disillusiontrtent among the
peasants as wall as middle classes in the plains once the non
coopsration IB)Vament ~ mthdrawn rather abruptly by Gandhi in
March 1922, that too at a time when peasants • pressure fran belcm
was radicalising the tone of nationalist polities in Andbara.
Raju probably thought that there wuld soon occur rebellions all
aver Irdio consequoot upon the disillusionment with non-violent
ex>ngreas );Xllitics, and he could then link hie war of liberation
with the other Indian rebellions. In reality his revolt did not
cross the boarders of ~, barring a few adjacent plains
villages, obviously due to the successful eneirclmant of tl1e
region by the British army. _....._ ______ ,,..,_ .. --------------·--- --·· ·---185. REport en Agency Rebellion for lSth O::tober 1922, fran
aawell, pub, D:3pt., <confid), p.66 o
186. Weekly Report from Ru9gins, dated 23rd June 1923, op.cit., p.270·
l-87. '1be JX>pular version of •folk tale• on Manyam rebellion was published in a drama by Padala, Alluri Sito.rama Raju ('l'elgu) .'l'his drama originally written in late 1940s is still very popular in An::lhara villages, Alao see, Yerramilli Narasimha Rao, Sri Alluri se2tharama Raju Charitra (1922-24, Paju Vilapavam> ('l'elugu, Pub. by Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, Not dated.); A 1"8Cent historical film "Alluri Seetaramaraju" ( Telugu, scope, colour, 1975, Padn'alaya) is the beat avaiable account based on both historical arnl folk tradition mixed. in a balanced way.
4.""/5 10 Raju' s utter diooppoint:.m31t, mile t.ll3 reaction of t.he , Congress in the pl.ainn \'t.le hootile, the respory_e fra:n other
political elezmmts ms either p:assivc or ~gntiva. For insttmco,
no doubt that a prominent nationalist pap:n-, Andhara Pntrika,
dsmimdcd an imnediata enquiry into the grievances of the hill
tribals, blt it t:as also the first to disclaim that Raju had My I
links with the non""'(XX)peration movement under the leadership of 188
Gandhi in the plains. After Paju' s dooth the· same papar
observed in its editorial that "the Fituri conducted by Raju is
once again illustratea that violence is quite a uselo:Js ~pon.
'
Hence all will do wall to adopt the exce\lent non-violent non-
cooperation preached by Mr. Gandhi. The Rampa Fituri is a good
example to illustrate that the adoption of violent msthods lika
revolutions and fiturio not only prove self-destructive but aleo 189
prove vary harmful lx>th to the people and to the CX)untry•.
4,~ so-calle::i "mi.litWlt" 'l'elgu Journal, the Conqroso, wae (..:.._
openly hostile ~'hen it wrote that it would bs •gratified" if tbe 190
•aampa Pituri • could be ccropletely put down~ And the -Kistna n
Patrika "-l'lB not an exception. It dtmotfod the Manyam rebellion
and was, in fact, a step ahead in criticising Government's
failure to supply rrore "arms" to the people and the •police 191
stationa• to fight the rebels. It justified the brutal • • •- •-••-• . ....,___._ ••• ---,-------·-• -• _,_u-11a -••:&-••---•·-----188. Andhra Patrika, 2Bt.~ 1\ugust & 5th D:!Cemoor 19227 15th June
19231 8th, 9th, lOth, 11th and 17th M:ly, 19241 Aslo see, PNNPM, Reel No.27, 19123, pp.l09B-99 for the translation of one rep()rt fran Andhra Patrika which demanded for an enquiry.
189. Andhra Patrika, 17th M:ly 1924, this English para ia taken fran RNNPM, Reel No. 28, 1924, p.70l.
190. 5ee Congress, 5th April and llth October 1923, in RNNPM, Real No. 27, 1923, P.P• 1335 and 1486-87.
191. :ttlstna Patri.ka, taken from R:-."NPM, Ibid., p. 752.
476 suppression of tbe rebellion. It was rather uneasy till Raju w:1s
192 put to death. Similar hostile reaction against Raju• s reb3llion
~ ~ 193 could be seen in all other ~a nowspapers.
\.!... "-'
Once Raju was shot chad and thG rel:xlllion was ruthlesnly put .A
dCMn, mny of the +dhra nationalist pap&s and journals W3rO ~ 194
quick in rananticising him as a great "national hero•. 'lhoy 195
elevated him to the level of •sru. vaji and RmJa Pratap•, and in 196 ' .
one case ha e::ts prnis:!d ao "Ienin•. 1Andhra Patri,ka.'oo::tto'.1cd upon
him th3 •bliss of Valhall.o11 and hop::d that "Raju ~ill enjoy the 197 1:
H33ven of berosa". 'Ib3 ~ya~i canpa.red Rllju with Gsorge .198
washi119ton.
192. Jtistna Patrika, .14th OCto~ and 2nd Sept. 1922; 5th K:ly 1923; 24th May and 25th October 1924; especially see· RNNPM, 1924, pp.l443-45, nlso reproduced in M. Ven.katarangaiyn 1
op.cit., Vol. III, pp.404-QS.
193. Janmattlumi, 15th May 1924; Andhravani (Ber~), 29th October 1922 and Go:Ulvari Patrika (Rajah~), 31st October 1922, in RNNPM1 Reel No. 26 1 1922, pp.l433-34; Simhapuri (Nellore), lOth May 1923; Guntur Patri•k<X (Guntur) 1
8th and 15th l4ay 1923; and Pinakini Patrik.a (Anantapur) 1
19th May 1923, in Ibid., 1923, pp.99, 669-70, alco C(..~ PP• 82, 486, 671, 752, 1098-99 '> 3150 and 1443; Sw.:ltantra (W3Skly 1 Rajahmundry) was ~ hnrsh and said that "such people (Raju) should die". ~ 13th May and 20th May 1924, in Ibid., Reel No .28 11924 , w. 70-71 and 765-66, sana of the extracts are available in M. Venkatarangaiya, op.cit., Vol.III, pp.389-90, 392-95 and 401-07.
194. Ambra .Patrikll, 8th and 17th May 1924 •
195. COngress, 17th November 1923 in RNNPM, Re3l t.!o. 29, 1925, p.l506J 22nd DecembGr 1925, in Ibid., Roo! r~.lO, 1926, p. 78; 21st July 1931, in Ibid., 1931, p.l052; *agrahi, 15th July 1919, quoted in .K.SUbrmmmyam •emt.e.mporary ~papers Opion oo Alluri Sitha Ram Ra.ju", in Itihas, Vol. VIII, No. 2 19BO, p.as.
196. Palleturu (Nidubrolu), 9th May 19241 in RNNPM, 1924, p. 731.
197. AB.'lhra Patritca, 17th May l.924. t:
198. ~agrahi, 8th July 1929, quoted in op.cit.
""""' 477
On 20th Cloctober, 1984, in the ~a Provincial u.-
Co'lference, a
resolution was proposed by Mr. A. Kaleswara Rao 1 to the effect
that "while condemning the violence of the late Alluri Sitarama
Raju, the Fituri leader, this Ccnference places oo. record its
appreciation of his patriotism, courage and self-sacrifice and
prays that his soul may rest in peace". Ho'tlever, since there
were ruitOurs to the effect that Raju was alive, an "amendnent
proposing the adjournment of discusion on the resolution" was 199
passed. 'lhe resolution on Paju was probably put off not because
of doubts regarding his death 1 but awing to cpposi tion fran other
COngressmen. '!his opposition was reflected, for example, in same
conments passed by Kistna. Patrika oo this issue. It said that
"these resolutions express the same kind of mental perversity as
was shown by the resolution expressing admiration for the conduct 200
of the anarchist Saha in Bengal n (emphasis added). 'lbere was a
similar hostile reaction in the Madras Legislative council, where
majority of the ~s pleaded with the Government to put an 201
early end to the rebellion.
It is ironic that the rebellion, which was seen as "very harmful
both to the people and to the cotmtry" 1 when the rebels were
engatged in a prolonged guerrilla war against the British c:::aire to
be seen, once it was stamped down, as a peoples war and its
leader as great as Shivaji, Rana Pratap, Lenin and George
washington, Talking about this hostile atti t\Xie to the
199. '!be Hindu, 21st October, 19241 also reproduced in M. Venkatarangaiya, cp.cit., Vol.III, p.365.
200. Kistna Patrika, 28th October 1924, in RNNPM, 1924, t:P-1445-46.
201. See, Madras LeJislative Council Proceedings, 13th Ktn., 1922, Vol. IX, Nos. 1 - 5, w. 535-44; March 1923, Vol.XIII, Nos. 1- 10, p.2784-91.
478 rebellion, David ArnOld observes that the •basic reason for the
.--:1
hostility of the ~a Congressmen was that they repreoented v
procisely those interests - the trad0rs, money-lenders,
contractors, J.m:nigrant ~ivators, and lnwyers -whose hold on 202
the hills the fituridars ware fighting to overthrow•. Hare again
Arnold is wrong for, first of all, the rebellion was neither in •
the beginning no.r in the. end aimed at •0\l'erthrowinq• . the
•interests• of the plninn ~oople. Rather Rnju was very Jm:Ch
successful till the end in subordinating all tlle contradictions
with plains p.wple to the basic anti""(X)lonial ~r. Ka have seen
above that many of the plains people were in sympathy with the ";\.
cnuse of rm:;el}e tut could not come out in its support, for the \.!-- "'- ,..., "
~y of Gond~nn nationalist ideology and "~an paradigm
was very strong in the plains. secondly, it is wrong to
characterise the COngress as solely representing a few interest
groups and hence to use this charactrisation aa an
explanation of its hostile reaction to tho •Rl,de Koyas". 'J.be
"" clllSs base of the Cmgress in ,.ndhra was much wider \....-
~-..... -.. -·· .... 202. David Arnold, op.cit., p.l39.
203. In 1929 in courso of an Aandhra tour, a Potrait of Raju was pre...CJCJ'lted to Gandhiji. Re3cting to this at a later date, he wrote "though I have no symp:1thy with and cannot admire armed rebsllion I cannot withhold my homage fran a youth so bravo, so sacrificing, so simple and so noble in character as young Shd ~~a Raju.. •.• Raju was (if he is r~lly d3ad.) not a 'fituri • wt a great h3ro. WOUld that the youth of the oountry cultivated Shri Rama Raju•s daring, couraga,devotion and resourcefulness and dedicated them for the attainment of SWaraj through strictly non-violent means. ~ me it is daily growing clearer that if tho teGming millions whom W3
the articulate middle classes have hit.herto suppresed for our ~lfish purpose are to b3 raised and roused, there is no other way save through non-violance and truth. A nation numbering millions needs no other neans0
.' Young India., July 18, 10929, Vol. XI, No. 29, p. 2~4.
479 >
than is assum:sd by Arnold. In reality, its hc:\!-ile reaction was
consistence with its bour9eois nation.nlist ideology and the 203
nature of the b&sic ~of struggle it adopted which wa have
analysed elsewhere.
Conclusion
'l'he tribala \'IOrk:ed, lived and conceptualised the world under
such oppressive colonial socio -GOOnani.c conditions that the
emergence of a domirmnt strand of anti -oolonial consciousness
was inevitable. Their alienation from their old forms of
processes of production which hnd hi thorto guaranteed their
exietenceJ their alienation from the old forms of justice and
forced &'!p:mdance on an alien form of (British) law and order and
judicial adndniatratian which was consistently weighted against
them, the imposition of •unjust" and "jubOOrdust" rule by.
notoriously corrupt forest bureaucrats, and so on, explain the
pervasive &nti-o>lonial consciousness which underpinned the
collective action of the tribals during the Manyam rebellion
1922-24.
Thus, in our views, the Manyam rebellion wn.s basically a radical
reaction against British rulo and was based on a anti-colonial
consciousness among the hill peasants. Unlike in the earlier
decades, the grievances of the hill peasants had acquired a
different social ueaning in the face of the eolonial rulers •
monopoliotic ~citation of hill resources which threatended
the very existence of the tribal •nnral• econany and society
during the first dscades of tho 20th century. 1be pessents •
perception of this objective reality obviously changed the
direction of their hostility towards the 0 Jubberdust0 British
rulers, the psrpetuators of the exploitation in the hills. 'Ibis
480 newly acquired p3I'Ccption of peasenta/tribala under colonialism
has not been adequately qrasped by Sumi t Sarkar and David Arnold
in their annlysis of this rebellion. For instance, SUmit Sarkar
argues that .. the gr iBVancea wre very similar to those which had
already inspired SC> many reballions in the same region -
l'IX)tl(!ylender acploitation, forest restrictions, use of Wlpaid 204
tribal labour by officials". Even Ollvid Arnold mia$eS this {X)int ' . ~5
and dismisses the analysis of the grievances in a few lines. we
hope wo have, on the other hand, de!tonstrated in the earlier
sections that what io really • striking• is not juzt tho
continuity of the grievance~, b.lt the new maaning which they
acquired by the beginning of the 20th century in the colonial
context and the oonaeqU!l.mt pushing into background of the
internal grievances. It is not at all surprising that not a
single shot was fired at the native police, plains • merchants,
· landholders and so on. Naithor any plains <Indian) exploit4:trs
were attacked in course of the two years war nor any grievances
associated with exploitat.ion by the plains people were brought
into the rebellion be it directly or indirectly. 'll1e sole object.
of the rebellion was to driV!! out of the hills the British \!Jho
threatened their very existence • . 'lh!l!l the rebellion was not a simple response to a localised
problem Of the dominant groups in the hills rather it was an -· .......... ..........__, _________________________ _ 204. SUmit Sarkar, 'Popular ·~t... op.cit., p.Sl he has
also ar9ue on the sa.'t\e lines in bis article •Primi ti ve Rebellion and M':xlern Nationalism• A note en Forest Satyaqraha in . the Non-c<X.')peration and Civil Disobedience ft>Vements•, in K.N. Paniltkar (ed), National and Left Movemantsin India (Vikas, 1980), p.l6.,
205. David Arnold, ap.c:it., p.l34·
481 org~ised reaction to a najor dislocation at societal level by
sri tish rule. In this rebellion, the leadership was invariably
provided from outside by radical elements, for the tribal.n were
handicaR}ed in passing fran objective recognition of colonial
wrongs to orqanised political action as a m:38ns for setting them
right. Thus, when the radical political elements like Si~amo.
Raju lit the torch of rebellion, the edifice of the hill u
society, already sm~daring and ready to take fire, naturally
produced a f~ war against British rule in the hills.
We therefore do not agree that it was, as has be::m argued by 206
David Arnold just an extension of a "fituri tradition (?)" into a
war by the I:anipulatiw opt;X)rtunisto and idealists fran the
plains for their wn ends. For the earlier 0 fituris" in this
region ware directed against the localised problems created by
local dominant groups such as succession to 'muttas) bJ.t not
against a distant superior or oppressor. Moreover, popular
participation in these "fituris• was far less and often even
absent. On tho other hand, the r.n.nyam robcllion of 1922-24
emerged out of an anti-colonial consciousneas in the popular mind
Which made it a war against Bitish rule in the hills. It ~
thus an anti-colonial war due to pressure from below, which no
doubt used the "fituri tradition" as well as other forms of
beliefs and myths to rally the tribal masaes behind this '*just ..
war. Unlike the earlier "fituris• the popular participation in
Manyam rabellion nnde it a form of hill peasants • protest from
below.
What oakes this rebellion all the m:>re interesting was its direct
and indirect links with nationalist ideology and. m:>VE:ments in the
-----·-·--~--------·-• .. -·-·-·--~--------·-·-•-••--------••·-----------------·----•a-•-• 206. Ibid., p.l4l
482 207
plains. 'l1le indirect and to sane extent even direct - influance
was that of revolutionary ter.i:orimn of Bengal and Punjab throll9h
ita leader Raju. Both •folk tradition• and official sources ":) >
suggest that Raju had ~s links with ter~ori~s and
revolutionaries i.tr\ far off North Indian t,a·...::>t'\.S.
At another lewl tho rebellion had a direct links with the non- (
CCX)pa:ration ~t undm- tho leadorship of the Congreoo in the
plains. First of ill, the trib!ll masses wre activiced by the
COngreso pracharakas mo kindled hop3 in tho popular mind with
their slogan of "swara.j" in one year". Later, Raju himsolf wao
acti va in spreading the tssai va prograurne of Noo-cooperation -
establlsllrlslt of Panchayat courte, anti-drink camvaign, khaddar
etc. - in the hills. tmn Gandhi called. off Non-cooperation in
1922, liko mny paasants and middle class per nona . in tho plains,
both Raju and tribal nooses must have also felt disillusioned
with Congress p:>litics, for n3ither swaraj W<ls established nor
any grievances of the peasnnts and tribals were re:novcd.
Especially Raju,
have psrcai ved this
due to his radical ideas, was likely to
disillusiOtlile'lt as l1t'l ideal opportunity
to ra.iso the mas~ against British rulo and establish 208
•swaraj". Ha also attended, in the disguise of a Punjabi
youth, the Oiotrict. Congress
---·-·--------··---•-•-··-·-----•-• ------------------------·------·--------·-----·-uu-• 207.. 'IbiD in fact proves that Arnoldi a aeswrption of •t.erritorialitya acting as a strong break in eKtension of the rebellion into plains is wrong. Ibid., w.l40-42.
208. Arnold argues that Raju started the war •in keeping ~th his Kshatriya Traditions'' and also due to the fear of his arrest by police in January 1922. Ibid., W• 135-36. But \OJe have clearly shown how Raju had d3vel.oped his CMn political ideology before starting the anti-British war in the hilla. Surprisingly, Arnold ignoreG the role of Raju' s political ideology and the infl 1.1$lCOS on the formation of that radical ideology.
463 Conference in 1923 and enphasiscd tho necessity of a Wllr to
liberate the country from foreign rule. He was very specific in
saying thtlt tY-3 W3S not against Gandhiji, bUt his path was
different from that of the Congres~ and Gandhi. The failure cf +
Raju in tran~rming this vision into reality was due to the might
of the Sri tish army in the i.nln:!diate sense. At an ideological
level Raju failed to psrceive the strength of the Gandhian
paradigm and the nationalist m:wem:mt under· his leadership in the
plains. For, neither the daninant political forc<!S t."''rc rendy to
aerge with the Manyam rebellion, nor tCS there any kind of
0.. spon~us or organised peoples' rebellion against British <onco
they ware loft by the COngress leadership without achieving
anything in concrete terms) oo the horizon.
MXeover, the national IIDVem::mt b!lsed on the Gandhian paradigm
\'aS very nn.rh against any form of violent rebellions and hence
the hostile reaction ·fran the plains against Manyam. rebellion.
True to their loyality to the Gandhian leadership, the 209
contemporary press was against the Manymn rebellion. The
dominant sx>litical groups in the plains want to the extent of
pressurising the Government to put an early end to Raju and . his
band of national rebels. Yet they \t--are readl' to romanticize Raju
as a •national hero" at a later stage in order to intec}rate the
tribals into their form of political action in the 1930's. ----·---··--, ........ ~-- - ,. ..... ·~-... ··--... Fl FQ ... MV 1 d F ... IM.JlUIIIil •• 'WI'
209. Talking aoout Ccngress • s hostile reaction Arnold argues that "a more basic reason for the hostility of the Andhra Congressmen was that they represented ~ecisely those interests - the traders, m:mey-lendera, contractors, inmigrant cultivators, and lawyers - whose hold on the hills the fi turidara were fi<jhting to overthrow", Ibid., p.l39. First of all his assunption of the Cmqressnten • s narrow social cla.ss base is wrong. Secondly, the rebal.s ware not fighting to overthrow the · plains • interests' , for the obje.cti ve of Raju was to drive the '111hite • men out of the hills but not the plains people.