Tribal kings held land cultivation rights in Utnoor for Rs 600 annually, says historian Banga Bhukya

Historian Banga Bhukya highlights how Gond kings ruled Utnoor, celebrating Dussehra at forts and holding land cultivation rights for Rs 600 annually under the Nizams. The legacy continued with Dev Shah, elected MLA twice during Indira Gandhi’s tenure

Adilabad: Bhukya Banga, a history professor from the University of Hyderabad who published a book titled The Roots of Periphery: A History of Gonds of Deccan India in 2017, mentioned the Utnoor fort and how tribal kings ruled this region.

“The tribal forts speak of the extent and power of Gond rule in the region. These ruined forts tell us about Gond politics and society. Indeed, they are manifestations of the sovereign past of the Gonds. Ruined forts constructed by Gond kings can still be found in Sirpur (T), Utnoor, and Nirmal of the erstwhile Adilabad district, as well as Manikgarh, Rajura, Wyagarh, Pratapgarh, Balharshah, and Chanda in Maharashtra,” he noted.

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Gond kings celebrated the annual Dussehra festival at these forts with elaborate rituals to demonstrate power to their subaltern groups. On the festival day, they brought life to a ruined fort by decorating it with lights and flowers. A royal flag was hoisted to mark their sovereign rule in the fort. Kings made public appearances dressed in royal clothes and seated on gaddis.

According to the book, Sitagondi Athram China Bapu Raja from Jannaram occupied the fort for the first time in the 1800s. He was succeeded by his son Hanmanth Rao. The tombs of both Bapu Raja and Hanmanth Rao are still situated on the premises of the fort. Hanmanth Rao was succeeded by his son Jalpath Rao, who was the last king. His estate was eventually taken over by the Nizams.

“Jalpath Rao’s ancestors held maqta, or land-cultivation rights, with a fixed rent over the parganas (a pargana is a territorial division above the village) of Utnoor (its haveli or surroundings), Sirpur (U), and Indraveli, paying an annual revenue of Rs 600 to the Nizam rulers in the 1800s,” he highlighted.

Jalpath Rao’s son Dev Shah, the last successor of the royal family, was elected MLA of Utnoor twice during the tenure of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He died in 2005. Their family had genealogical links with the Raja of Chanda, present-day Chandrapur in Maharashtra.