Pirana, Rajasthan

Pirana (Hindi:पिराणा) is a small village 8 km north of Tonk city in Tonk district, situated near a hill base.

History

Pirana was a republic of Jats in Tonk in fourteenth century. It was a well-organized state. They used to collect taxes from traders and rich travelers through passing their state. They used to collect one fourth of the goods as tax. There was a system of equal right of all the brothers and castes on the land under their occupation. But in return they used to select 9 soldiers from their people for war. Every child, youth and elderly persons were committed to protect their state and sacrifice their lives.

Tax collection from Jahangir

Once a caravan of Begams of Badsah Jahangir happened to pass through their state. Jat chieftain stopped the caravan and allowed to pass only when they paid taxes. Jahangir when came to know about this incidence he sent his subedar Malook khan to suppress these Jats. Malook khan knew the powers and strategy of Jat rulers so he did not attack them directly. He camped at a village called Sherpur near Ranthambore and started his planning. He allured one Doom and asked details about how he could defeat these Jat rulers. The Doom told him that on "bhadwa badi 12" the Jats celebrate ‘Bachchh baras’ when all are armless. Malook khan attacked on this very date when the Jats were celebrating ‘Bachchh baras’. Jats being unarmed, many of them were killed. This way a Jat republic was destroyed.

Migration from Pirana

Jiwan Singh and Raimal in Pirana were two chieftains who were killed in above attack. The pregnant ladies at the time of above attack got escaped and sent to Sanganer where they founded a town near Sanganer. The boys on their birth were named Jiwan and Raimal as decided prior to war on the name of above warriors killed. Jiwan later chose to live at a place of his ancestors and founded a new village ‘Pirana’ in the name of old village of same name.

Historical monuments

Some ladies were killed or chose to become sati after the death of their husbands. There are terraces constructed in the memory of these ladies at Pirana locally known as ‘Satiyon ke chabutre’. The inscriptions on this site bear years up to samvat 1478 (1421 AD). These inscriptions indicate the period of war of Malook khan with Jats was in fourteenth century when Khilji was ruler at Delhi.

References

* Thakur Deshraj: Jat Itihas (Hindi), Maharaja Suraj Mal Smarak Shiksha Sansthan, Delhi, 1934, 2nd edition 1992, pp. 604-605.