Feudalism in Pakistan
Encyclopedia
The feudal archetype in Pakistan
consists of landlords with large
joint families possessing hundreds or even thousands of acres of land. They seldom
make any direct contribution to agricultural production. Instead, all work is done by peasants or tenants who live at subsistence level. Pakistan suffers not only from decadent feudalism but also from the primitive tribal system.
In Pakistan remote
areas periodically run into vast estates
— comparable to medieval Europe — in which the landowner runs the town, perhaps operates a private prison
in which enemies are placed, and sometimes pretty much enslaves local people through debt bondage
, generation after generation.
The landlord, by virtue of his ownership
and control of such vast amounts of land and human resources
, is powerful enough to influence
the distribution of water, fertilisers, tractor permits and agricultural credit and, consequently exercises considerable influence over the revenue, police and judicial administration of the area. The landlord is, thus, lord and master. Such absolute power can easily corrupt, and it is no wonder that the feudal system there is humanly degrading.
The system, which some critics say is parasitical at its very root
, induces a state of mind which may be called the feudal mentality. This can be defined as an attitude of selfishness and arrogance on the part of the landlords. It is all attitude nurtured by excessive wealth and power, while honesty, justice, love of learning and respect for the law have all but disappeared. Having such a mentality, when members of feudal families obtain responsible positions in civil service
, business, industry and politics, their influence is multiplied in all directions. Indeed the worsening moral, social, economic and political crisis facing this country can be attributed mainly to the powerful feudal influences operating there.
Almost half of Pakistan's Gross National Product and the bulk of its export earnings are derived primarily from the agricultural sector controlled by a few thousand feudal families. Armed with a monopoly of economic power, they easily pre-empted political power.
To begin with, the Pakistan Muslim League
, the party laying Pakistan's foundation 53 years ago, was almost wholly dominated by feudal lords such as the Zamindars, Jagirdars, Nawabs, Nawabzadas and Sardars, the sole exception being the Jinnahs. Pakistan's major political parties are feudal-oriented, and more than two-thirds of the National Assembly (Lower House) is composed of this class. Besides, most of the key executive posts in the provinces are held by them.
Through the 50s and the 60s the feudal families retained control over national affairs through the bureaucracy and the armed forces. Later on in 1972, they assumed direct power and retained it until the military regained power recently. Thus, any political observer can see that this oligarchy, albeit led by and composed of different men at different times, has been in power since Pakistan's inception.
This feudal elite has migrated into politics, where it exerts huge influence. And just as the heartlessness of feudal and capitalist barons in the 19th century created space for Communists, so in Pakistan this same lack of compassion for ordinary people seems to create space for Islamists.
According to Tufail Abbas, President of Pakistan Mazdoor Mahaaz, and Editor-in-Chief of the monthly Urdu journal Awami Manshoor, "This feudal system has made the people of Pakistan pathetic." Ayesha Siddiqa, an independent analyst and author of the book ‘Military Inc: Inside Pakistan’s Military Economy’, argued that there is no feudalism in Pakistan.
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
consists of landlords with large
Large
Large is an English surname, with variants including, but not limited too Lardge, Lurge, and Larg. Its meaning is variable, though it may derive from the Norman French adjective, large , as it is found in the surname "le Large" in English records dating back as far...
joint families possessing hundreds or even thousands of acres of land. They seldom
Seldom
Seldom was a Seattle-based pop-rock trio. Their line-up consisted of piano, bass, and drums, but some songs included electric guitar, mellotron, strings, or other keyboard instruments. They toured in support of both Pedro the Lion and Sarah Shannon...
make any direct contribution to agricultural production. Instead, all work is done by peasants or tenants who live at subsistence level. Pakistan suffers not only from decadent feudalism but also from the primitive tribal system.
In Pakistan remote
Remote
Remote may refer to:* Remote control, commonly known as a remote* Remote broadcast, commonly known in broadcasting as a person or a live remote* Remote access* Remote desktop...
areas periodically run into vast estates
Estate (house)
An estate comprises the houses and outbuildings and supporting farmland and woods that surround the gardens and grounds of a very large property, such as a country house or mansion. It is the modern term for a manor, but lacks the latter's now abolished jurisdictional authority...
— comparable to medieval Europe — in which the landowner runs the town, perhaps operates a private prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
in which enemies are placed, and sometimes pretty much enslaves local people through debt bondage
Debt bondage
Debt bondage is when a person pledges him or herself against a loan. In debt bondage, the services required to repay the debt may be undefined, and the services' duration may be undefined...
, generation after generation.
The landlord, by virtue of his ownership
Ownership
Ownership is the state or fact of exclusive rights and control over property, which may be an object, land/real estate or intellectual property. Ownership involves multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different parties. The concept of ownership has...
and control of such vast amounts of land and human resources
Human resources
Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for example, business sectors or even whole nations...
, is powerful enough to influence
Influence
Influence may refer to:In science and technology:*Sphere of influence , the region around a celestial body in which it is the primary gravitational influence on orbiting objects...
the distribution of water, fertilisers, tractor permits and agricultural credit and, consequently exercises considerable influence over the revenue, police and judicial administration of the area. The landlord is, thus, lord and master. Such absolute power can easily corrupt, and it is no wonder that the feudal system there is humanly degrading.
The system, which some critics say is parasitical at its very root
Root
In vascular plants, the root is the organ of a plant that typically lies below the surface of the soil. This is not always the case, however, since a root can also be aerial or aerating . Furthermore, a stem normally occurring below ground is not exceptional either...
, induces a state of mind which may be called the feudal mentality. This can be defined as an attitude of selfishness and arrogance on the part of the landlords. It is all attitude nurtured by excessive wealth and power, while honesty, justice, love of learning and respect for the law have all but disappeared. Having such a mentality, when members of feudal families obtain responsible positions in civil service
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
, business, industry and politics, their influence is multiplied in all directions. Indeed the worsening moral, social, economic and political crisis facing this country can be attributed mainly to the powerful feudal influences operating there.
Almost half of Pakistan's Gross National Product and the bulk of its export earnings are derived primarily from the agricultural sector controlled by a few thousand feudal families. Armed with a monopoly of economic power, they easily pre-empted political power.
To begin with, the Pakistan Muslim League
Pakistan Muslim League
The Pakistan Muslim League was founded in 1962, as a successor to the previously disbanded Muslim League in Pakistan. Unlike the original PML which ended in 1958 when General Ayub Khan banned all political parties, each subsequent Muslim League was in some way propped by the military dictators of...
, the party laying Pakistan's foundation 53 years ago, was almost wholly dominated by feudal lords such as the Zamindars, Jagirdars, Nawabs, Nawabzadas and Sardars, the sole exception being the Jinnahs. Pakistan's major political parties are feudal-oriented, and more than two-thirds of the National Assembly (Lower House) is composed of this class. Besides, most of the key executive posts in the provinces are held by them.
Through the 50s and the 60s the feudal families retained control over national affairs through the bureaucracy and the armed forces. Later on in 1972, they assumed direct power and retained it until the military regained power recently. Thus, any political observer can see that this oligarchy, albeit led by and composed of different men at different times, has been in power since Pakistan's inception.
This feudal elite has migrated into politics, where it exerts huge influence. And just as the heartlessness of feudal and capitalist barons in the 19th century created space for Communists, so in Pakistan this same lack of compassion for ordinary people seems to create space for Islamists.
According to Tufail Abbas, President of Pakistan Mazdoor Mahaaz, and Editor-in-Chief of the monthly Urdu journal Awami Manshoor, "This feudal system has made the people of Pakistan pathetic." Ayesha Siddiqa, an independent analyst and author of the book ‘Military Inc: Inside Pakistan’s Military Economy’, argued that there is no feudalism in Pakistan.
Related Books
- Naim Ullah, Mohammed. 2003. Pakistan Under the Stranglehold of Feudalism (Pakistan Jagirdari Zamindari Nizam Ke Shikajije Men): A Nation Under the Agony of Fundamentalism, Rehmat Publications
- Alavi, HamzaHamza AlaviHamza Alavi was an academic sociologist and activist with adherence to Marxism. He was born in Bohra community in Karachi, the then British India which now constitutes Pakistan and eventually migrated to London. The focus of his academic work was nationality, gender, fundamentalism and the...
. 1980."India: Transition from Feudalism to Colonial Capitalism." Journal of Contemporary India 10: 359-399. - Coulborn, Rushton. 1968."Feudalism, Brahmanism and the Intrusion of Islam upon Indian History." Comparative Studies in Society and History (review of Sharma, Indian Feudalism) 10: 356-374.
- Gopal, K. K. 1962."Feudal Composition of Army in Early Medieval India." Journal of the Andhra Historical Research Society 28.
- Gopal, Lallanji. 1963. "On Some Problems of Feudalism in Ancient India." Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Res. Inst. 44: 1-32.
- Habib, Irfan. 1974. "The Social Distribution of Landed Property in Pre-British India (a historical survey)." Historical Probings in Memory of D. D. Kosambi, 264-316. Editors R. S. Sharma, and V. Jha. New Delhi: Peoples Publishing House.
- Mukhia, Harbans. 1981."Was there Feudalism in Indian History?" Journal of Peasant Studies 8, no. 3: 273-310.
- Pearson, Michael N. 1985 "Land, Noble and Ruler in Mughal India." Feudalism, 175-196. Editors Edmund Leach, and et al. Sydney: Sydnay Association for Studies in Society and Culture.