Zamindars of Bihar

However, since 1970, they started losing this presence and according to DM Diwakar, former Director of AN Sinha Institute of Social Sciences, they were converted into "silent onlookers" by 2020, amidst assertion of Backward Castes and Dalits.

[6] Mughal rule in Bihar was characterised as turbulent and volatile as many of the region's zamindars made continuous efforts to defy the imperial authority.

The early British rulers did not want any "innovation" or "experimentation," even if the zamindars, taluqdars, and many estates were defaulters to the government for not paying the raised land fee.

Gidhaur, Namudag, Ramnagar, Ramgarh, Biher, Kulharia, and Dumraon were Rajput estates, while Kayastha controlled two other significant zamindaris, Baghi & Surajpura.

[12] The goal behind the establishment of the revenue farms in Bengal and Bihar was to obtain the highest possible share of the net produce and then fix it for all time under the Permanent Settlement.

The colonial authority began to require the zamindars in place, including those who were established as landowners for all time, to make a regular, ongoing payment.

[14] The Permanent Settlement act by the British East India Company did not significantly alter the landholding patterns in Bihar, leaving Rajputs and Bhumihars as the major Zamindars.

[18][19] Emerging organizations of middle peasant castes like Triveni Sangh[15] and Kisan Sabhas took up the issues of exploitation,[20] with the Naxal threat also acting as a check.

[18] Following independence in 1947, there was large-scale support in Bihar for the abolition of zamindari especially among peasants, agricultural labourers and the urban middle-class who stood to gain the most from this.

This shift allowed them to maintain their influence and shape the destiny of their communities, fostering a new era of grassroots leadership and social change."