Chapter Three: Laws and the Colonial State in India

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Reading Information

Bernard S. Cohn, “Chapter Three: Laws and the Colonial State in India,” Colonialism and Its Forms of Knowledge

Overview

In this chapter, Cohen introduces the reader to the various models that the East India Company and the British Empire used to maintain law and order in India. Cohen provides a premise that the British typically followed a similar system of law wherever the expanded and colonized. According to Cohen, “in all British overseas colonies, at least until 1776, there was little debate concerning the role of the Crown… and about the basic jural and legal institutions of rule” (57). Besides Ireland, India was the first major colony to present itself as a serious problem regarding maintaining British dominated jurisprudence. In this chapter, Cohen focuses on the regions conquered by the EIC and the British Empire during the 18th and 19th centuries. His focus on the Bengal and Mughal Empire allows him to discuss Islamic law as well as Hindu law, and how Britain used them as a basis for legal discipline.

Cohen provides the reader with different models that the British Empire implemented in their attempt to control India through law. He first discusses Warren Hastings who was amongst the first to attempt to adapt local law and customs into a workable British-led system. Hastings realized that the Mughals had a pre-established and effective structure until it crumbled due to internal strife. As such, Hastings laid the groundwork in his successors would attempt various models to assert control. Individuals like Jones and Colebrooke established a legal system based on Indo-British thought.

This reading shows the reader the great lengths that the British Empire went through to provide stability without resorting to the sword. India proved itself to be a challenge for the British, as they couldn’t just apply their standard application of colonial rules. Instead, the British Empire needed to make concessions and adapt local traditions. In my opinion, this proved to be a small victory for the colonized.

Keywords

  1. Gentoo Code (67)- The Gentoo code was a legal code translated from Sanskrit. Halhed, who worked for the EIC used this code to understand Hindu thought, culture, and religion.
  2. Despotic Model- during the 18th century, some British thinkers such as Alexander Dow pushed for a more “master over a slave” type of system in regards to ruling India. In its application, the British studied the Mughal empire and how authority transfers upon death. As such, the British sought to apply this system to their advantage.
  3. Duel principle of sovereignty- In this case, the EIC was given authority to administer India, but under parliamentary regulations with occasional review.

 

Argument

The British followed their typical system of “conquest or accession” (57). India presented itself as a unique problem where the British had to develop a new system of jurisprudence to control India.

 

Evidence

Cohen provides evidence from other historians who were tasked by the EIC and the British Empire to study the colony. Furthermore, he brings in more modern historians such as Rosane Rocher to critique and provide alternative viewpoints to the earlier works. For example, Cohen discusses the Gentoo code and how the British used it to understand the native culture. While the 18th-century historian, Halhed, goes through the process of writing his research and his model, Cohen uses Rocher as a later historian to critique the objective of the report. She argues that Halhed’s interests “were not primarily legal (for the EIC to establish control), but concerned more with explicating Hindu thought, religion, and customs” (67). Cohen provides evidence as a means to handrail the reader through India’s history and how the various legal experiments were performed.

Historiographical Debate

The author does address the work of other scholars. However, Cohen doesn’t necessarily take a side. Instead, he provides scholarly opinions to his evidence to help illustrate how he came to his position. He doesn’t directly place himself in one position, but instead, acts as a moderator.

Contribution to Our Understanding of Colonial Rule

 

What we typically saw in colonial rule was one technologically superior entity using overwhelming force to submit the enemy. In our case, it was Great Britain against Indian ruler-ships. In the last reading, we discussed various modalities employed by GB to maintain control and understand its colony. Here, Cohen delves deeper into the process and experimentation used to develop a form of jurisprudence. GB had to study and adapt itself to this new reality where they needed to modify local laws to suit the empire. I believe that this was the first time the British needed to compromise and show leniency. Furthermore, not only did the British need to compromise, but they also relied on experts to understanding the complex nature of the various religions inhabiting India. For example, scholars compared Islamic law to Hindu law in developing a legal system to apply in India. In some ways, this gave the Indians power in that they were able to retain some form of their identity.

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