'Criminal' Tribes of Punjab: A Social-anthropological Inquiry

211 Pages·2010·1.21 MB·English

by  Birinder Pal Singh

‘Criminal’ Tribes
of Punjab
ii ‘Criminal’ Tribes of Punjab
‘Criminal’ Tribes
of Punjab
A Social–Anthropological
Inquiry
Editor
Birinder Pal Singh
LONDON NEW YORK NEW DELHI
First published 2010
by Routledge
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Simultaneously published in the UK
by Routledge
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Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2010 Birinder Pal Singh
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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record of this book is available from the British Library
ISBN: 978-0-415-55147-2
To all
the tribespeople
of Punjab
vi ‘Criminal’ Tribes of Punjab
Contents
Preface viii
Introduction xii
1. Bauria 1
Birinder Pal Singh
2. Bazigar Banjara 26
Birinder Pal Singh
3. Bangala 51
Harinder Kaur
4. Barad 74
Harinder Kaur
5. Gandhila 93
Malkit Kaur
6. Nat 103
Deepak Kumar
7. Sansi 112
Harvinder Singh Bhatti
Glossary 129
About the Editor 145
Contributors 146
Index 147
Preface
The Government of Punjab, at the behest of the Central Govern-
ment, granted a project, An Ethnographic Study of the Denotifi ed and
Nomadic Tribes of Punjab to the Department of Sociology and Social
Anthropology (DSSA), Punjabi University, Patiala, Punjab, to ascer-
tain the tribal character of certain communities. In the original
letter from the Punjab Government the department was given a
list of 15 communities, but these were in fact only 12 as alternative
names of certain communities were also included in the list such
as Nayak, Aheria and Naik. The fi eld investigation informed us that
these were actually one, that is, Naik, in the universe of this study.
Similar was the case with the Gadaria and Pali tribes. Thus we
had fi ve communities in all. Five teachers from the DSSA and
one from the Department of Correspondence Courses of the
Punjabi University were assigned two communities each. Each
teacher was to supervise the collection of ethnographic details of the
two communities assigned to him/her. As one investigator left the
project mid-way, the data collection was delayed by a few months.
The present volume focuses on seven communities — the Bauria,
Bazigar Banjara, Bangala, Barad, Gandhila, Nat, and Sansi — that
were declared ‘criminal tribes’ by the British Administration. The
alleged notoriety and large size of three of these was a fascination for
us, and prompted us to look into their ethnographies in an attempt
to make some sense of their alleged ‘criminality’. What had really
gone into their becoming criminal, if at all, would certainly be a still
more fascinating exercise, as also understanding their cosmologies
analysed semiologically. But these are independent projects that do
not fall within the scope of the present volume.
Another compelling factor to document these ethnographies is
that since Denzil Ibbetson and H.A. Rose’s A Glossary of the Tribes
and Castes of the Punjab and North-West Frontier Province there is
virtually no information available on these communities, let alone
a detailed one. This study was based on the Census operations of
1881 conducted by Ibbetson. The data was compiled by Rose and
published in 1883. (It was reprinted in 1970 by the Languages
Department, Punjabi University.) However, even the Ibbetson–Rose
study concentrated primarily on one tribe, the Sansis (ibid.: 362–79);
all others were accorded minor accounts, largely introductory and
superfi cial. Bauria is, however, an exception (ibid.: 70–79).
Preface ix
K. Suresh Singh’s People of India (Punjab) also has limited infor-
mation on each of these tribes that have been classifi ed as ‘Scheduled
Castes’ in Independent India. This information too does not go
beyond short, general descriptions. According to the Census of India
(Punjab) 2001, there is no ‘Scheduled Tribe’ population in the state
at this time. In the absence of any detailed information on these
tribes/communities, the present volume assumes signifi cance.
Another advantage that we had was the fact that a number of our
respondents were of or above the age of 80. They could inform us in
detail of the traditional practices, beliefs and legends of their com-
munities. Moreover, at this point in history, tradition has been
preserved due to the presence of these people, and the closed nature
of their social structure. The younger generation is given to modern
ways of life and occupations. The details of their traditions would,
as a result, not be available to us after the death of the older gen-
eration. Thus, the present volume gains importance as a repository
of traditional beliefs and practices.
The data was recorded in Punjabi; translations have been done
by the editor into English without observing linguistic technicalities
such as diacritics, etc. It is easy to understand and appropriate for
this volume, which is not an exercise in language. For the trans-
lation of vernacular words, the Punjabi–English Dictionary (1994)
published by the Punjabi University, Patiala proved useful. The
translation is literal to capture the meaning of the word, as when said
in Punjabi, even if it is an odd expression in English. To break the
monotony of the text and translation, and also where the vernacular
had been used commonly, the English translation is, sometimes,
given in parenthesis.
This work would not have been possible without the support
of numerous persons and organisations. We are thankful to the
Secretary, Department of Social Welfare of the Punjab government
who provided us with the opportunity to work on such an oppressed
section of Punjabi society, whose living conditions are worse than
the poorest of the poor in the state. Numerous respondents went
on record saying that this was the fi rst time that some one from the
government had come to ‘ask about them’. We are thankful to the
Director, Social Welfare of the Punjab government and especially
the Deputy Director, R. R. Karkhal, who was always forthcoming,
assisting us whenever necessary. We are especially thankful to the
Department for not forcing us to hurry the project, as is customary
with government offi ces.