Today in Indian History (23rd December)

• ·         The Ninth Prime Minister of India, P. V. Narasimha Rao, passes away on December 23, 2000. Considered to be brain behind the Indian economic reforms, Rao ran a minority government which was marred by charges of corruption. 

• ·         Allah Wasai, famously known as Noor Jehan or Noorjehan in the celluloid world, died on December 23, 2000.

Today in Indian History (22nd December)

• Today is the 125th birth anniversary of Indian mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan. His birthday is celebrated as National Mathematics Day in India.    Ramanujan was born to a poor family on December 22, 1887 in Erode in Tamil Nadu. The maths genius died at the age of 33. 
• On 22^nd December 1851, the first train carrying the construction material ran in India at Roorkee.
• Cyclone hits South India and Sri Lanka on 22^nd December in 1964.  Dhanuskodi, a small town at the southern tip of the Rameswaram Island in Tamil Nadu, was completely devastated and submerged by the cyclone, resulting inn the killing of killing of more than 300 people. 
• Sarada Devi, philosopher and wife of Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, was born on 22nd December, 1853. Ramakrishna was the guru of famous spiritual leader of India, Vivekananda.
• December 22, 1939 was declared as the “Day of Deliverance" by Muslim League to celebrate the resignation of the Congress ministries in the Provinces to protest over the Indian people not having been consulted over Viceroy Linlithgow ‘s decision to declare India’s entry into the World War II.
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Polygamy in Ancient India

In India polygamy has existed since recorded history. Though the general populace of India in the time of Rig Veda were monogamous, polygamy was prevalent in the ruling class. Added to this, brahmans and others sections who can afford polygamy also had more than one wife. 

From the frequent references of polygamous marriages in the ancient Indian literature and legal texts we can safely say that polygamy was not an unknown affair in the social life of ancient Indians. 

However, some legal texts discouraged polygamy. Dharma Sutra of Apastamba disallows a married man from marrying for the second time if his wife is of good character and has borne him sons. Kautilya’s  Arthashastra says that in case of a man opting for second marriage, the first wife must be  compensated.

Mitaksara and Dayabhaga: Schools of Family Law and Inheritance

Today India has two famous schools of family law and inheritance; Mitaksara and Dayabhaga. They are named after the medieval legal texts on which they are based.  While most families of Eastern region of India including Bengal and Assam follow the rules of Dayabhaga, while Mitaksara is followed generally by the rest of India.

The main difference between these two schools is that while according to the Dayabhaga school, son has a right in the family property only on the death of father, Mitaksara maintains that sons and grandsons have rights over the property even before the death of father.

A commentary on the lawbook of Yajnnavalkya, Mitaksara was written by Vijnasevara, who was patronized by Western Chalukya emperor Vikramaditya VI (c. 1075-1127). Dayabhaga was compiled by eminent medieval jurist Jimutavahana in the 12^th century.

Corruption in Ancient India

The recent anti-corruption agitation in India has brought the issue of corruption to the forefront of conscious attention. People may be ruing that today’s India has become a hotbed of corruption.

However, it is not that India in ancient times was free from the influence of the hydra-headed evil of corruption. What distinguishes today’s India from ancient one, when it comes to corruption, is that while ancient people were able to keep corruption at bay, modern India is finding helpless in rooting out corruption from public life.

Corruption thrives on human weakness. It is as old as the human race and has as many facets as human nature itself.

There are references to the judicial corruption in ancient India. To check this, high standards for judges were set. A judge has to be gentle, learned, religious and impartial. He should not show any sign of anger.

It was suggested that till the settlement of the cases, no private meetings between the judges and litigants should be allowed.

The Arthashastra by Kautilya suggests that agents provocateurs should be employed to test the honesty of the judges at periodic intervals. According to Vishnu Smriti, a judge found guilty of corruption should be banished and forfeit all his property.

In the 5th century AD, the Gupta rulers employed a sort of vigilance network to bring corrupt official to book.

Writing in the 3rd century BC, Megasthene remarked that litigation was not a regular part of people’s life in India. However, this cannot be said of modern times. This can be gauged from the sheer number of court cases and the resultant delay in the administration of justice in India. So, it is only to be hoped that taking leaf from the ancient India, those, at the helm of affairs in modern India, will do something to root out this evil.