A Case of Kidnapping in India
One consequence of the abolition of slavery by Britain was a shortage of cheap labour in plantation colonies which had previously relied on slave labour. To meet this demand for labour an indenture system was developed, whereby a worker would be recruited to work at a particular colony. A contract laid down the pay and conditions the worker could expect and the term of the contract (typically five years), at the end of which the worker could sign a new contract or receive free passage back to his or her home. India was an obvious source of plentiful labour, and the years 1830 to 1920 saw a great migration of Indians to various British and French colonies. Despite the efforts of the Government of India to ensure the system was fair and humane for its citizens, abuses were not uncommon.
One such case was uncovered by the Rev Thomas Evans, a Missionary living in Allahabad, which he related in a letter to the Lieutenant Governor of the North Western Provinces. He describes how on the morning of 17 February 1871, a man by the name of Gunga came to him in some distress. He said that his aunt had been offered work grinding corn, and that upon accepting this job had been taken to Khoordabad where a group of women were being held. The women were given some food and then told that they would be sent to Mauritius as labourers. Understandably upset, the women begged to be allowed to leave, but to no avail. The following day Gunga, accompanied by his uncle, found the group of women, but was prevented from taking his aunt home by a man named Buldeo Jemadar, who claimed possession of them.
The Rev Evans returned with Gunga to Khoordabad and confronted Buldeo, who denied the women were being held against their will. The Rev Evans then asked each woman in turn if they wished to stay, and all replied that they did not and were being forced to stay, after which the Rev Evans told the women to leave. They immediately fled in such haste that they left behind any belongings they had, with one poor women being so desperate to get away that she left her small child behind and had to be brought back to collect it.
Woman & child Photo 888/78 © The British Library Board Images Online
On further investigation the Rev Evans discovered that Buldeo had a team of eight men out on the watch for vulnerable men and women who could be enticed away. Buldeo was working as a recruiting agent for a company called Messrs Bird & Company, who expressed sorrow for the affair but felt there was little they could do to prevent the practice. Buldeo and three other men were subsequently convicted and sentenced to between six months and one year rigorous imprisonment.
In writing to Government about the case, the Magistrate of Allahabad said there was no doubt that great oppression was exercised and luckily detected, but that he had every reason to believe that it was not an isolated incident and that very many similar practices were resorted to.
John O’Brien
Post 1858 India Office Records
Further reading:
IOR/L/PJ/3/1110 No.49
A guide to records on the system of indentured labour, Indians Overseas, A guide to source materials in the India Office Records for the study of Indian emigration, 1830-1950 by Timothy N Thomas (London: The British Library, 1985), can be found on the BL website.
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