A petition by people of Kirtipur whose noses were cut off to have the status of land restored to them upgraded
ID: PD_0002_0001
Edited and
translated by Bal Gopal Shrestha
in collaboration with
Ramhari Timalsina and Manik Bajracharya
Created: 2017-04-23;
Last modified: 2018-10-22
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Abstract
This document relates to a petition by people of Kirtipur whose noses had been cut off and whose land had been seized. These people had been directed to show up in person at the Kausī in order to register the amount of revenue due on land they had afterwards been provided, but many of them did not do so, which prompted the authority to penalize the whole group. The present document testifies to a later, undated decision that determined that their land was not to enjoy the same status as that of others in the Valley who had had land restored to them.
Diplomatic edition
[1r]
1श्री\1उप्रांतमाहाराजकरुनानीधान्दयासागरनेपालमाश्रीपृथ्वीना2रान्माहाराजप्रवेसहुंदा३सहरकोविर्ताथामीवक्सेकोरहामिकि
3र्तिपुर्याहरुकोविर्ताहरनेनाषकात्नेहुनाले३सहरवमोजि
4महामिनाषकतुवाहरुकोविर्ताथामिपाउभनीविंतिचर्हा
5उदाकालुपाध्यामार्नेहुनालेनाषकात्याकोविर्ताहरायाको
6भनीहुकम्भैनाषकतुवाजतिलाईपाषोतारषेतरोपनी२
7दिनुभनीवक्सेकोषेतरोपनी१०००कमाईभोगचलनगरी
8षाईवस्यामापछीसोषेतकोतिरोदराउनुलाईकौसीपथाउदा
9जाचदिनेरजाचनदिनेहुनालेपछिकौसीवातपक्रीजाचदि
10नेलाईपैरु ।। जाचनदिनेअत्येह्रिभनीदवल्पैरु१तिरो
11दराईगुर्ज्यूकोषानगीमाषुवा़थप्येकोश्रीपृथ्वीनारान्
12माहाराजनेपालप्रवेसहुंदा३सहरकोविर्ताथामिवक्से
13कोषेतरैकरणथहर्नेनाषकतुवाहरुलाईवक्सेकोषेत
14रैकरथहराईनापजाचगर्नुपाउनेहोईननापजाचण
15गर्नुभनीहुकममर्जिकोतोकप्रमागीनापजाचगर्नअडा
16लाईपाउनेहुन्प्रभूजोमर्जिहुकम्¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
Translation
[1r]
Uprānta: Mahārāja, most gracious one, ocean of compassion! “Glorious King Pṛthvīnārāyaṇa, after his entrance into Nepal, restored birta lands of the three cities. ''May we people of Kirtipur who lost birta lands and whose noses were cut off have [our] birta lands restored, as [occurred] in the three cities.” [Thus] a petition was made. [The king] had given an order whereby the people whose noses were cut off lost their birtā land because they [participated in] killing Kālu Pā̃ḍe1 . Each of them was granted 2 ropanīs of pākho or ṭārakheta, the total amount of the land given being 1,000 ropanīs. Later, after they [started] cultivating it, and using and enjoying its fruits, the kausī summoned them to register revenue on the kheta [etc.]; some of them came in for an assessment, but some did not. Therefore, the kausī took them into custody and fined those who allowed an assessment half a rupee, and those who did not double the amount, 1 rupee. [This money], once on the books, was added to the salary of the gurujyū as a khuvā. The kheta [etc.] which glorious Pṛthvīnārān granted when he entered into Nepal and restored the birta lands are not raikara lands. [Therefore], these lands should not be measured considering raikara lands. The decision [in the form] of a marji should be sent the Nāpajāca (i.e. measurement and assessment) office, as My Lord commands [in the marji]!
Commentary
This document has as its background the episode during which people in Kirtipur had their noses cut off on the orders of Pṛthvīnārāyaṇa Śāha after he conquered the town in 1768 (Shrestha 2016). Additional related documentary evidence is made reference to in Shrestha 2018 Shrestha 2018.
This petition by the people of Kirtipur whose noses were cut off and whose land was confiscated, or by the progeny of such people, is not dated, so that it is unclear which authority this petition was submitted to; the creator of the document is also obscure. The document tells of an appeal made by certain people of Kirtipur not to measure and assess their land as raikara. According to it, King Pṛthvīnārāyaṇa had ordered the noses of some people of Kirtipur cut off and their land seized because they had a part in the killing of Kālu Pā̃ḍe during the war. After confiscating the land, King Pṛthvīnārāyaṇa provided each of them 2 ropanīs of land. The total amount of land given by the king was 1,000 ropanīs, so that the number of people who had their nose cut off and who benefited from the donation was 500. The document reveals that these people were directed to show up in person at the Kausī to register the revenue due on the land provided, but many of them did not do so, which prompted the office to penalize them. In the end, the petition failed in its goal.
Many historians have added their weight to establishing the veracity of the incident involving noses being cut off (see, for instance, Baral 1964: 248, Father Giuseppe 1799:319, Panta 2073, Panta 2074 etc.). Others, however, have regarded it as either wholly untrue or overstated (e.g. Saurabh 2014). This incident is mentioned in a later chronicle of Nepal (Bajracharya and Michaels 2016a: 116 and Bajracharya and Michaels 2016b: 134).