NUPI LAN

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND : The upheaval known as Nupi Lan of 1939 is extremely significant in the light of half a century of British rule in Manipur after the national disaster of 1891. The power wielded by the Maharaja with the strength of the Empire in support of his rule was a negation of traditional statesmanship of earlier Meitei Kings. The feudal-social set-up inherited from the religious and social schism of the 18th century was nurtured by the Raj which reached its apogee of religious and social oppression in the 3rd decade of the 20th century. Lack of national finances had forced the hands of the despotic prince to experi­ment with a system of fiscal oppression unparalleled in social impact, causing deep wounds and distress in the body polity. 
The establishment of a pseudo administrative-bureaucratic structure in imitation of the distant Imperial bureaucracy, yet tinged with existing feudal values resulted in widespread malpractices and corruption. Add to it the fundamental reduction in the resources of the State due to colonial exploitation by the Mayang traders which obliterated all inspects of eco­nomic development. The entire social, religious, fiscal and political system therefore was of inhuman proportions, created by a despotic prince protec­ted by the Imperial power, and aided and abetted by the intrigues of a sect of colonial exploiters called Mayangs, whose excessive greed for surplus wealth at the expense of the indigenes were unique in the new plural set­up of the enforced society. Again the famine, the floods, and the general indifference of the new social elite enhanced this unbearable malaise.
 The outbreak therefore was a spontaneous eruption of the suppressed energy of the exploited people whose genuine aspirations for justice and | human dignity helped create this great upheaval. The spark naturally had to be set off by the rice export of the Mayang traders. The vanguard was the suffering, yet fearless women of the land, followed up by well-organized political movement from the men under the leadership of  Mr. Hijam Irabot.
Here we give the official version  of the  upheaval,  as gathered from ( the Administrative Report of 1939-40, and a representative opinion of those times from the Pioneer, Lucknow.  The Darbar Resolit’ 1 of 12.12.1939 is also added to reflect the unreal calm of the admitHStra&o in the midst of that tumult.
The most important event of the year was the outbreak in Decem­ber 1939 of disturbances known as “Nupi Lan” or the Women’s War. There had previously been a similar outbreak in 1904 when the then Political Agent issued orders for the rebuild­ing by forced labour of the Assistant Political Agent’s bungalow which had been burnt down by inhabitants of Imphal. For a week there were demonstrations by mar­ket women which had to be dispersed by force.
The present outbreak had its immediate cause in a rise in the price of rice. Foreign mer­chants in Imphal who had set up rice mills, were buying all the paddy they could get, milling it and exporting it. This and a disap­pointing harvest hit the poorer townsfolk hard when they were already suffering from the loss of their old earnings from   husking   paddy.
Demonstrations were therefore held demand­ing the cessation of ex­ports and the closing of all rice-mills. The first of these was on Decem­ber 12th, when several hundred women came to the State Office and in-sisted that the Presi­dent of the Darbar, Mr. Sharpe, should forbid the export of rice. The President pointed out that such an order would require the sanction of, the Maharaja and the women accompanied him to the Telegraph Office so that he could wire to His Highness who was at Nabadwip. When he had done so, they kept him there to await the Maharaja’s reply and the Comman­dant of the 4th Assam Rifles, Major Bulfield and the Civil Surgeon, Major Cummins, who came to the rescue,  were kept there too. Finally the compound of the Telegraph Office which is in the British Reserve was cleared by a detachment of Ass?, Rifles, but though toe club bearer was allowed to bring them drinks, the officers did out until 11:30 p.m
 Next day a message was received from the Maharaja asking the Political Agent to help prevent the export of rice and an order for­bidding it was prompt­ly issued. The women then turned their atten­tion to the rice-mills, extorting written pro­mises from the mill-owners that they would not work their mills. But that night, news that a mill-owner had soaked and boiled some paddy to make par­boiled rice caused an angry crowd of some 10,000 women to march on one of the largest mills and only after the electric switches of the mills had been removed by an order of Mr. Gimson, the Political Agent, could he persuade them to go home.
 Excitement died down, only to flare up again on December 29th. The day before, some ethers whose rice had been thrown into the gutter lodged a complaint in the court of the Poli­tical Agent, naming five women as their as­sailants. The Agency Police thereupon asked the State Police to pro­duce the women so that their statements could be recorded. A large crowd of women objected and besieged the Police Inspector in the State Thana for, several hours, alleging quite falsely that he had kicked an elderly Brah­min woman. Threats to murder the Inspector were shouted but he succeeded in spiriting himself away to the Palace—a creditable and surprising achievement for a man of his bulk.
 During the succeed­ing days the main bazar in the British Reserve was boycotted and meetings were held in the Police bazar. Men now began to take a more prominent part in the agitation, which is said to have been fanned by an old prophesy that the appointed time had come to the arrival of a new Maharaja riding on a white elephant. The Mahashabha, a lo­cal body with Congress affiliations, also took advantage of the un­rest and suggested, that their leader was the rider of the prophesy. A particularly violent speech on January 9th, however,   The success of the lathi charges had a steady­ing effect and the women whose interest had gra­dually waned as the men joined in and who by this time were no longer very clear as to what the hullaballoo was all about, had themselves split into two opposing factions. With a fall in the price of paddy conditions gra­dually returned to nor­mal, but it was not for over a year that the main Imphal bazar was again fully occu­pied.
Though the immediate causes of the Women’s War had been econo­mic there was also a strong feeling of dissat­isfaction with the Admi­nistration over the ”Mangba Sengba” scandal of the year before. Well-to-do Brahmins had gone round the village infor­ming people that the Brahma Sabha had declared them Mangba or outcast and offering for a consideration to have them declared Sengba or purified. Similar methods were also used to persuade villagers to pay Brah­mins for recovery of cattle which the Brah­mins  had   themselves stolen. Although such Brahmins were often not members of the Brahma Sabha and were in any case usually acting with­out its authority, the fact that the Maharaja was the head of the Brahma Sabha caused a loss of confidence in the Administration. The Darbar, who were some­what out of touch with the public, shared in [this loss of confidence— in this case unjustly, having taken rigorous and successful action to put a stop to the scandal. Coming on top of this loss of confi­dence, the Women’s War I caused a breakdown of the Administration, manifested mainly by the inadequacy, both in numbers and efficiency, j of the State Police. The question of the reform of the adminis­tration was accordingly taken up and was under discussion when the year under report closed.
( Administration Report 1939-40 ; Pages 13 )
Imphal (Assam) Dec. 17.
The Political Agent ,Manipur State, wires  from Imphal:
On the morning of December 12, a large crowd, consisting mostly of women, surrounded Darbar Hall in Imphal to petition for the immediate stoppage of the export of rice from Manipur. The Darbar passed a resolution, and at about 1-30 pm. the President telegraphed to His Highness the Maha­raja, who was away on a pilgrimage in Nabadwip, asking him to approve of the stoppage of export. The crowd which went with the President to the Tele­graph Office became excited and still demand­ed an immediate order, although they were told clearly that the reply from His Highness could not be received for some hours. The crowd, which by the time numbered about 4,000, with the women still in a majority, confined the President of the Darbar, the Civil Surgeon and some other officials in the Telegraph Office, and refused to allow them to leave even to take food.
 Troops called in
At about 2-30 p.m., the Commandant of the 4th Assam Rifles, having heard of the confinement of other officers, came to the Telegraph Office and was equally pre­vented from leaving by the crowd of women. The attitude of the crowd grew threatening, and at about 2-45 p.m, a platoon of the Assam Rifles arrived. The crowd grew more exci­ted, and very soon began to throw stones at the Telegraph Office. Two Windows were broken and the situation was so dangerous that the troops were called in to clear the compound. This they did in a few minutes amid a fusillade of stones by pushing back the women with their rifles.
 Order was thus res­tored, but the crowd remained on the road outside the  compound without  dispersing,  and the officers were unable to leave the Telegraph office until about mid­night. In the clearing of the compound, 21 women were injured either by stones, or by rifle butts. They were all treated on the spot by the Civil Surgeon and three other medical men who were present. There were no injuries of a serious na­ture, but five of the women were removed to the Civil Hospital and detained for further treatment.
 Reports have been circulated that the women were wounded by bayonets. These are wholly erroneous. There were no bayonet wounds.
(The Pioneer, Lucknow dated 19.12.39.)
Darbar Resolution No. 1 of 12.12.39.
1. To consider a petition from certain villagers asking that the export of rice should be stopped.
F. M., Fg. M. and Reg. M. consider that the increase in the price of rice to Re 1 per Sangbai during harvest time indicates a short­age of rice in Manipur and apprehend that there will be famine in Manipur unless the ex­port is banned. These three members are in favour of stopping the export of rice com­pletely until enquiries have been made to as­certain the actual stock of rice in Manipur. They request His High­ness to pass orders stopping the export of rice immediately so that His Excellency the Gov­ernor of Assam may be approached to sanc­tion the ban on export to the Assam Rifles and Kohima Civil Station.
J. M. and the Pre­sident dissent from this view as they do not consider that the pre­sent increase in the price of rice is due to any appreciable shortage. The export of rice has only been opened for 18 days, and con­sidering the fact that this year’s harvest has been on the whole reasonably good there must still be a con­siderable amount of ride available for export. J. M. and the President wish to reconsider the matter at a later Darbar after ascertaining the approximate amount of rice at present in Mani­pur and to decide then whether some form of restriction on export should be introduced.
PM. although not in favour of an imme­diate ban on export is in favour of an imme­diate restriction on export pending enquiry.
Although opinion is divided, all members are unanimously in favour of an immediate enquiry. L.S.0. and L. R. O. are asked to give an early report on the size of this year’s harvest. P. M. S. D. will enquire into the amount of stock at present in the bazar and the average amount of rice being exported daily.
His Highness is hum­bly requested to pass orders at an early date.