Book
Tribal law and justice: a report on the Santal
Concept • New Delhi • Published In 1984 • Pages:
By: Archer, W. G. (William George).
Abstract
Archer, a Deputy Commissioner of Santal Parganas during the period of December 1942-June 1945, presents in this document an analysis of Santal tribal law which he observed in operation during the period of his administration. The work is divided into three major parts. Part I discusses civil law in Santal society, based in large part on the application of customary law to various offenses through the judicial system (i.e., the village courts and the Court of Five MANJHIS). Part II describes various ramifications of the application of BITLAHA sanctions to criminal justice. BITLAHA is the Santal term used to describe a mass punishment for major tribal offenses. Part III of this report deals with the structure of the judicial system in tribal regions (with special reference to the Santal Parganas), showing in effect the erosion of customary law and their supercession by statutory law (p. xvii). This section contains a number of suggestions by the author on how the Santal judicial system could be improved. In addition to the above, this study also contains much information on the right of men and women in the society, marriage and divorce, birth, naming customs, sickness, and death, relevant to the period studies (1942-1945).
- HRAF PubDate
- 1998
- Region
- Asia
- Sub Region
- South Asia
- Document Type
- Book
- Evaluation
- Creator Type
- Government Official
- Document Rating
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- Analyst
- John Beierle ; 1996
- Field Date
- December 1942-June 1945
- Coverage Date
- 1942-1945
- Coverage Place
- Santal Parganas District, Bihar, India
- Notes
- W. G. Archer ; with an introduction by K. S. Singh
- v. 1. Civil law in Santal society -- v. 2. Bitlaha -- v. 3. Civil justice in tribal India, with special reference to the Santal Parganas
- 'Published under the Authority of the Bitlaha Government'
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 734-741)
- LCCN
- 84901345
- LCSH
- Santal (South Asian people)