Examine the ways in which panchayats regulated Mughal rural society.

Question 12:Examine the ways in which panchayats regulated Mughal rural society.

The correct answer is -i. The village panchayat was an assembly of elders with hereditary
rights over their property.
ii. the panchayat was usually a heterogeneous body.
iii. An oligarchy, the panchayat represented various castes and
communities
iv. The decisions made by panchayats were binding on the members.
v. The panchayat was headed by a headman known as muqaddam
or mandal
vi. The headman was chosen through the consensus of the village
elders, and that this choice had to be ratified by the zamindar
vii. Headmen held office as long as they enjoyed the confidence of the
village elders, failing which they could be dismissed by them.
viii. The chief function of the headman was to supervise the
preparation of village accounts, assisted by the accountant or
patwari of the panchayat.
ix. The panchayat derived its funds from contributions made by
individuals to a common financial pool.
x. Panchayat ensured that caste boundaries among the various
communities inhabiting the village were upheld.
xi. Panchayats also had the authority to levy fines and inflict more
serious forms of punishment like expulsion from the community.
xii. Any other relevant point
Any eight points to be explained