| TRADITIONAL INSTITUTIONS OF LOCAL SELF-GOVERNANCE > Village Council | POWER, FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES OF THE VILLAGE OFFICIALS > : Manjhi : Paranik : Jog Paranik : Jog Manjhi : Godet : Naeke : Kudam Naeke : | MORE MANJHI- THE COUNCIL OF FIVE MANJHIS (Pargana level) | LO BIR BAISI (Supreme Court on Regional level)

TRADITIONAL INSTITUTIONS OF LOCAL SELF -GOVERNANCE

Village Council (More-Hor) (Village Level)
This is the lower most unit of the administrative body under Manjhi Pargana System. This village council is known as More hor - the five men, the approximate number of officials that constitute the quorum of the council. This body is the original court of tribal justice and in all disputes it is the first to intervene. Its duty is to see that the rites of birth, initiation and death, the conduct of the year's festivals, the laws of exogamy, and the canons of sex are duly observed. It ensures that the principles of law are followed, it maintains civil rights and the many cases it acts as a court of registration. It revolves round seven village officials and while in point of law these are only its servants, the administration of the village, the maintenance and making of its law depend on their integrity and influence.

This More hor is regarded as the first court of law where all the matters of socio-religion, legal and quasi-judicial nature are decided with the assembly. The official head Manjhi is also considered as the fountainhead of justice and custodian of Santal customs and manners. In all cases of marriage and funerals, the headman is the custodian of social responsibilities. It also settle the following: -
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a) All the civil disputes within the village

b) Village council acts as a court of registration for;

i) Adoption of a son or daughter,
ii) Induction of a ghardi jawae,
iii) Conversion of a union into a ghar jawae marriage,
iv) Induction of a ghar jawae by agu hatar,
v) Bringing of a married daughter's husband as a ghar jawae by agu mit,
vi) Gift of land to a daughter sister or niece as taben jom,
vii) Gift of land to an asul badna, and
viii) Exchange of land.

c) Village registration of Birth, Marriage and Death of the villagers.

d) Formal village council meetings are required for

i) The showing of bare itat and its receipt,
ii) The payment of the bride price,
iii) The grant of presents at bahu bande and jawae dhuti,
iv) the conveyance of land to a custodian, and
v) The engagement of a servant.
vi) Partition of the family property
vii) Allotment of communal property

a) Manjhi
The Chief official of the village council is the Manjhi. The Manjhi with a batch of village officials to assist him ordinarily exercises the social authority in the Santal village. All the members of village elect him. Being the head or guardian of social authority he has powers to control almost all the socio-religious and moral activities of the village men. Generally he looks after all the simple and knotty cases or complaints of village like property distribution or disputes related to property, divorce given by either side, incident of illegal or restricted sex relationship or force marriage, collection of rents and etc. But in all these cases the Manjhi can not deal independently. In dealing with any case or giving judgement of any case he can do with the consent of other officials. So, in short; we can say that Manjhi has power to look after almost all the activities of the village people and can judge the same with the advice of More-hor. His office is not honorary but he gets honorarium every now and then in cash or kind.

His position in fact is that of a general disciplinarian, a communal custodian. Because of his vital role in the life of the village, he commands general respect. Indeed the common Santal attitude is to regard his as the father of the village. Manjhi Baba, you are our father. At his death there is often genuine grief for until the new manjhi has established his influence, the village activities may face temporary disruption.

b) Paranik
Paranik is the next senior officials of Santal More-hor who acts like an assistant Manjhai. He is responsible to aid, advice and assist the headman in handling the functions. In absence of Manjhi he works as acting Manjhi but he cannot look after all the village functions and he can deal complaints only of simple nature. Regarding complaints of knotty nature, he has power to only diary and is decided in the presence of headman.

c) Jog Paranik
Jog Paranik is the third official of village council More-hor and responsible to assist the Paranik. In absence of Paranik he is entitled to assist Manjhi also. It is pertinant to note here that Jog Paranik has no independent jurisdiction of function excluding the assistance of superior officials.
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d) Jog Manjhi
Roughly Jog Manhi is made responsible for arranging all tribal feasts including Handi (Rice beer) on any common occasion of village. This office bearer has duty to arrange the ceremonial feasts. Apart from this he has some policing powers also. His most important duty however is to look after the moral attitudes of the boys and girls.

e) Godet
He is like an orderly of village headman. At the time of marriage negotiation he functions as a coordinator and does other works as directed by the headman.

f) Naeke
Naeke (Village Priest) is responsible for celebration of all the religious functions like celebration of festival, rituals related to birth, marriage, death and etc. Any religious function can be celebrated only after the presence of Naeke. This is why Naeke is regarded as the spiritual head of the village.

g) Kudam Naeke
Kudam Naeke is assistant priest of the village. He is responsible for assisting in the celebration of religious activities.

MORE MANJHI- THE COUNCIL OF FIVE MANJHIS (Pargana level)
This is the second tier of local self-government and it normally comprises of ten to twenty villages. This is the second court of appeal in Santal tribal law. The head of this organization is called Pargana. In carrying out these duties, he is assisted by a Desmanjhi and a Chakladar. The Desmanjhi is virtually a Paranik who assists in revenue collection, takes an active part in hearing disputes and is generally the Pargana's deputy. A Chakladar is a regional Godet who summons the Manjhi, calls the parties and assists in executing the decisions of the council. The head has power to look after the functionaries of various villages with the assistance of village elders representing the village under this organization. This is a first appellate court and so complicated cases like unmarried motherhood, cases of bigger social disputes of tribal customs during the religious functions and etc. are taken up. This higher tribunal sits only occasionally, being called by head's initiative or on the request of aggrieved party. On the occurrences of any such cases, the villagehead invites area's elders and the headman of the village from whom the case came for an appeal. It is important to point out that once the Pargana is selected he is at liberty to stay in the office or quite irremovable till his death.
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LO BIR BAISI (Supreme Court on Regional level)
In the words of W.G. Archer-The final authority in Santal society is the disom hor or people of the region. This body meets once a year at the Lo Bir Sendra or hunt in the burnt forest'. The hunt is given this name as the jungle is fired in March to clear the undergrowth and we burn offences there; It is said that originally there was only one hunt for the whole tribe but now every region has a hunt of its own. These hunts do not follow administrative units . They take their name form the central mountain over which the hunt passes and villagers within ten or twenty miles of the mountain come to attend it.

This Supreme Council is organized during the Annual Hunt event. In fact the Annual Hunt comprises of three events - the Hunt, (Sendra), recital and narration of sexual songs (Torea) and the supreme council of the people (Lo Bir Baisi).

The intimate connection between the council of the region and a hunting celebration is due to various causes. A hunt is obviously much the most effective way of assembling the Santals of a region.

Once the council has started, anyone may speak however lowly and the officials of the village and the neighborhood are in temporary eclipse. The council Said Bodding, is an example of literal and true democracy'. The forest council' said Kolean Haram is our High Court. There the Parganas, Deshmanjhis and Manjhis cannot keep us down. The people, both small and great, decide everything. If they find that the big and greedy have acted unjustly, they punish them severely. In the forest no injustice is allowed. Only justice is done.

Narrating the method of formulating the ancient Santal laws, Kolean Haram says- 'At Tore Pokhori Baha Bandela', says Kolean Haram 'the ancestors met under a sal tree, an atnak and a mahaua.' They spread out lotus leaves and for twelve years or twelve days they drank the water of Kero dadi. They reviewed their customs and decided the rites of birth, initiation, marriage, sickness and death. When all was over they went across Tore Pokhori Baha Bandela either on the bank or over the water on the lotus leaves. The men came up and gathered by an bush and the women met in the shade of a mahua. Then they saw that the red dye on their feet was not wet and that the lotus leaves were neither crushed not bruised. So they said, ' We have decided well. May these rules and customs stay as now foreever' .
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