In the agrarian society of Mughal era, documents from which regions recorded petitions sent by women to the village panchayat, seeking redress and justice?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra
Documents from Western India – Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra – record petitions sent by women to the village panchayat, seeking redress and justice.
NCERT (2026-27): “2.4 A ‘little republic’? … According to established social norms, the household was headed by a male. Thus women were kept under strict control by the male members of the family and the community. They could inflict draconian punishments if they suspected infidelity on the part of women. Documents from Western India – Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra – record petitions sent by women to the village panchayat, seeking redress and justice. Wives protested against the infidelity of their husbands or the neglect of the wife and children by the male head of the household, the grihasthi. While male infidelity was not always punished, the state and ‘superior’ caste groups did intervene when it came to ensuring that the family was adequately provided for. In most cases when women petitioned to the panchayat, their names were excluded from the record: the petitioner was referred to as the mother, sister or wife of the male head of the household.…” |