Madhusudan_Das

His Life and Achievements 191
well-written memorandum submitted to Sir William Wedderburn. the then
Lt.Governor of Bengal. Madhusudan while attempting an analysis of the
evolution of the zamindari system as was prevalent in the then Orissa,
endeavoured his test to hammer this point home, by emphasizing the fact
that it was nothing but an innovation of the Moghul rule in India. More
and more, he impressed upon the point that down the ages: land had
belonged to the actual tillers of the soil, who exercised inalienable
ownership right o\cr the land they tilled and cultivated, so long, as they
continued to pay the rent. Citing the ancient Smritis. he observed that,
"as the hunter's claim was irrelutable in the game he killed, so the right of
the peasant was inalienable on the land he tilled and the crops he raised "
Most significantly enough. Madhusudan's fight for the cause of
Oriya peasants during the long proceedings of the Orissa Tenancy Bill.
1911. deserved special mention. A pillar of cloud by day and of fire in
night, he attacked this proposed bill on the floor of the Bengal Legislative
Council with all the vehemence he could muster. A draft tenancy bill,
designed to secure the objective i.e. a self-contained agrarian code for
Orissa as it was claimed by the British Government, was brought on the
floor of the Bengal Legislative Council in the year 1911. But as it was
proved later on, it was only on the insistence and the interest of the
Bengali landowners whose landed property was no doubt considerable
in Orissa, the Bill had been mooted in the Bengal Legislative Council.
In fact. Madhusudan had come to know it much before. He
challenged this Bill on more than one point as the repository and
combination of all destructive powers in the earth. Moreover, he
characterized me Bill as "a combination of all that is oppressive in
Bombay. Madras. Chotnagpur. Bengal and East bengal". He lamented
over the grim fact mat Orissa has become such a land where "the worst
character of all parts of India find refuge".
However, above every thing else. Madhusudan held two. among
all the clauses of the proposed bill viz: clause-13 and clause-14 as guilty
of exploitation of tenants rights. In the matter of transfer of tenant's
occupancy rights, clause-13 of the bill had put much oppressive
restrictions and obstacles. It had provisions that: "every transfer, by safe.
gift or exchange of any tenure or a part of tenure shall be invalid
unless made with the consent of the landlord". On this point, Madhusudan
alleged strongly that this "consent of the landlord". It was quite difficult
to get as the landlord might use to convert it to an established source of