MALWA FIRMAN

The grant-notifications had Chimaji’s name apart from that of Nanasaheb. This meant that they must have been readied up when Chimaji was still alive. Later, Chimaji’s name was dropped and the guarantor position of the Sardars (Shinde-Holkar etc.) was added. The Firman begins, “Badshah, through his grace, should consider the application by Nanasaheb and Chimaji Appa, that they are ready to serve as mentioned below. They should be granted the office in the Badshah’s own council and their prestige should increase. For this, the following has been written.

“The chief clauses of the Firman were as follows:

1. The Marathas should not campaign in any other provinces except Malwa.
2. If the Marathas enter any other provinces, the Peshwas should subdue them.
3. The Peshwas should keep one of their Sardars in the Badshah’s service along with five hundred cavalrymen.
4. The Peshwas should not demand anything higher than the recent grants provided by the Badshah.
5. The Peshwas should provide four thousand Maratha army whenever the Badshah needs help. If any more forces are required, the expenses will be borne by the Empire.
6. The Inams, Jagirs, Charitable endowments granted by the Badshah should be continued by the Peshwas as before as appropriate.
7. The taxes normally collected from Zamindars etc. should not exceed what has been assessed before.

The Peshwa is being granted the office of the Nayab-Subedar (assistant) of Malwa on these conditions.”

There were other clauses that required the Marathas to come and help the Mughals in their need. The four Maratha chiefs: Ranoji Shinde, Malharrao Holkar, Udaji Pawar, and Pilaji Jadhavrao stood guarantee for honouring these promises. This unprecedented assurance by the Peshwa’s subordinates was dictated by the Mughal court, and read, “Should the Peshwa oppose the Badshah during his service, we (Sardars) will request him not to do so, if he does not listen and his head is turned, we will resign from his service.”

After this agreement was provided in writing, Badshah readied up the grant-notifications and dispatched them. Duff has mocked the above guarantee in words that this was like one thief standing guarantee for another. But this same criticism can be applied to the British administration all over Hindustan.

The moment this Firman was granted to the Marathas, the erstwhile relations between big and small rulers in Malwa and Bundelkhand with Delhi were broken and their reconstitution with Pune began. Their strings now fell into the Peshwa’s hands, due to which the attention of the Peshwas began getting drawn more towards the north to settle down the new administration there. Since the Peshwa’s Sardars, Shinde, Holkar, Pawar and Jadhav had stood guarantee for the Peshwa in good faith, their stature increased among the general public. Equally so, their check must have increased over the Peshwa himself. One finds, that whatever battles or other affairs the Marathas took upon themselves, had germinated out of this new system of administration. Two examples of Bhopal and Kota are pertinent in this regard. Another easily discernible effect was, Sawai Jaisingh had nursed an ambition since the time of the Sayyed brothers, to take control of Malwa and expand the boundaries of his kingdom up to the Narmada. It failed going forward and he was forced to act as per the Peshwa policy to protect himself. The close friendship that he formed with Bajirao affected him negatively in the end. Not only this, but the moment the office of the Subedar fell into the Maratha hands, Jaipur kingdom itself came under their influence. The fortune too favoured the Marathas. On 23 September 1743, Jaisingh himself died, due to which Rajput rulers were rendered weak and they had to take support from the Marathas. If one reviews the agreement for the division of Malwa-government, one can realise the truth of the above effect.

To be continued…