Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri

Jammu and Kashmir’s Monthly Magazine

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Jammu,November 1,2009 /Vol3 / Issue 11 ||Price Rs.30 ||Postal RegistrationNo.JK-350/2009-11 ||www.epilogue .in .in

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Sociology Socio-Cultural and Economic Changes among Muslim Rajputs:

A Case Study of Rajouri District in J&K DR. M. MAZAMMIL HUSSAIN MALIK 

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he present Paper deals with sociosoc io- cul tur al and Eco Econom nom ic changes among Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. The efforts have been mad e to ex pl ore th e hi st or ica l background of the Rajouri as well as Muslim Rajputs, their socio-cultural and economic conditio conditions ns and changi changing ng pattern. The Paper accommodates the co nc ep t of Ra jp ut s, hi st or ic al background of Muslim Rajputs, their conversion to Islam, caste stratification and soci socio o cult ural and econ omic changes. Primar Primary y social institutions like Family,, marriage, education, polity and Family economy have been used as parameters to limit the broader concept of sociocultural and economic setup. The process of change has been examined in the traditions, customs and rituals related to family and marriage, educational standard and opportunities, political activities and economic status of the Muslim Rajputs before and after 1989. Rajouri and Poonch Poonch are the twin hilly districts of the Jammu and Kashmir state having rich Historical background of their own and previously considered as the land of 'Rajas'. The district headquarter of Rajouri is located in the South – West of Jammu Jammu and Kashmir State situated at the distance of 153.km, from Jammu. It lies between 700 to 74o-4, East longitude and 32o-58 to 330-35, North latitude and was separated from the erstwhile backward District Poonch. The District Rajouri is

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bounded on the north side by District Poonch, on the south by Jammu, on the east by Udhampur and on the west, by Pakistan occupied Jammu and Kashmir (Mirpur (Mir pur area) area).. Rajtar Rajtarangni, angni, the anici anicient ent chronicle of Kashmir which was written during the period of Sultan Zain ul Abdin mentioned its old name as Rajapuri, from which the present name has been derive der ived. d. Albr Albruni uni vis visite ited d Raj Rajour ourii wit with h Sultan Masaud in 1036, AD., he has also stated in his book “India” the name of Rajouri as Rajavari. The socio- cultural and economic history of Rajouri goes back to the Vedic period. In Maha Bharata there was a kingdom which was known by the name of Panchal Desa. The king of that State was Panchal Naresh whose daughter Daraupadi was married to Pandavas. Most of the historians identify Panchal Desa as the region in the mountains of  Panchal Range which cradled the whole districts of Rajouri and Poonch. F.F. Pargitor has stated that second branch of immigrants crossed Himalayas in the north- west and settled in Rajouri and Poonch areas. Rajouri, Bhimber, Bhimber, and Naushera, were included with in the territory of Abhisar which was earlier one of the hill State of Punjab Kingdom. The early fragmentary record indicated that in the 4th century B.C., there was a federal type of political set up in the north west of India, which included Abhisar with Rajouri its capital. At the time of Alexander's invasion, Rajouri was at the height of its glory glory.. During

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Muryan period, the town of Rajouri was a great trading centre. Hiuen Tsang who traveled through this area in 7th century A.D., mentioned about the hill State of Rajap Rajapuri, uri, the land of the kings kings.. Still earlier in the Budhist period it formed a part of Gandhar territory (Afghanistant, Ghandhar and Tashkent) and latter it was included in the domain called cal led Dar Darabh abhisa isanga nga whi which ch com compri prised sed the hilly stretch from Poonch to Kashmir during that period Laharkote (presently Loran Mandi) in Poonch and Rajouri had emerged as two independen independentt and powerful states of the area. In 11th century A.D. Rajouri was ruled by chiefs of the Paula Dynasty under the suzerainty of Kashmir in 1097A.D. Rajouri emerged as principality in about 1003 A.D., the first ruler of the Paul dynasty was Raja Prithivi Paul, and last was Raja Amna Paul (1194 AD)., later on the Paula dynasty was Concluded by Raja Noor ud Din, he migrated from Punjab and Killed Raja Amna Paul, he was the first Muslim Jarral Rajput Raja who laid the foundation of Jaral Muslim Rule in Rajouri in (1194 AD), Kingdom Remained in the hands of his clan for seven centuries. Rehiemullah Khan with his son Raja FaqirUllah Khan were the last Muslim Jaral Rajput rulers of Rajouri, when Maha Raja Gulab Singh Captured Rajouri on 21 of October 1846. Rajouri was merged in to a tehsil of Bhimber District. Rajouri bifurcated from Bhimber District and affiliated with

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Reasi District in in 1904 A.D., after independence, Rajouri Became part of the newly constituted Poonch-Rajouri District. On 1st. January 1968, Rajouri was declar declared ed as new distr district ict in the map of Jammu and Kashmir State. Social Structure of Muslim Rajputs: Presently Rajouri town is the administrative headquarter of the District It lies at both the banks of the river and is a meeting place of different roots leading to Kashmir, Poonch, Lahore, and Jammu etc., it is at the elevation of 3094 ft. from the sea level. According to Census 2001, 6 Tehsils 7 Blocks and 77 Panchayats covering 381 villages constitute Rajouri District. Nearly 45% of the geographical area of  the District is covered with forest. Administratively whole District of  Rajouri has been divided into seven tehsils, these are Rajouri, Kalakote, Naushera, Sunderbani, and Thannamandi, and in addition to that Dharal Malkan is the 7th tehsil declared in 2007.All the tehsils of the district have their own socio cultural and economic importance. The who whole le Dis Distri trict ct is pop popula ulated ted with different religious and caste comm uni tie s with dee ply roo ted customs and traditional system. system. The whole popu populatio lation n of the area is comprised of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs and Christians. The total population of of the district Rajouri is 4, 83000 out of which Hindus constitute 39%, Muslims constitute 58%, Sikh and others constitute 03% of the total Population. Total Muslim population of the District Rajouri is 2, 80,140 and Muslim Rajputs estimated population is about 1, 45,672 which constitute 51.99% of the total Muslim population. Muslims of Rajouri District have been classified into four categories, such as Rajputs, Gujjars, Kashmiries and 'others' The Gujars and Kashmiries are the linguistic divisions of 

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the area, where as, the whole Muslim population of the district district is stratified into various caste groups. RAJPUTS: The term Rajput is derived from Sanskrit word “Rajputra” found in the Vedas, the Ramayana, and Mahabharata. It has been used by the warriors and the Rulers, with passage of  time there were many kshatriyas. The primogeniture allowed only the oldest male offspring of a king to succeed him, the rest were known as Rajputras.The word Rajput is claimed to be a changed term of Rajputra. Gradually it became a caste. Rajputs regard themselves as being descended from the vedic warrior class known as the Kshatriyas. To differentiate them from ordinary Kshatriyas the word Rajput was used, which literally means "son of a King." Rajputs are divided in to 36 major clan belong to one of the three great patrilineages, which are: The Suryavanshi lineage claiming descent from Surya, the Hindu Sun god, in English it is called Solar Dynasty Dynasty,, it is one of of the oldest dynasty of the kshatriyas. Th e ch an dr av an sh i li ne ag e, claiming descent from “Som” which literally liter ally means "Moon "Moon." ." In Engli English sh called This Lunar Dynasty Dynasty,, it is also old but younger than the Sun Dynasty Dynasty.. Som was the first king of this dynasty dynasty.. The Agnivanshi .lineage, this lineage claming descent from Agni, the Hindu God of fire. Only four Rajput clans are expected to be belonged to this lineage, they are Chauhans, Parmara, Solanki and Partiharas. Some scholars also include Nagvanshi and Rishivanshi a separate lineage. Literally, Muslim Rajputs are the Rajputs that converted to Islam The Raj-Puts (Sons of King) were ruling royal warrior clans of South Asia from ancient times has a long and well documented history of warrior kings and a strong

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martial reputation. They are in Pakistan and northern India, In Pakistan Muslim Rajputs generally took part in government services and in politics, Prime Mini ste rs, Chi ef Mini ste rs, G o v e r n o r s o f Pr o v i n c i a l s t a t e s , Ministers, such as Quaid e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah the father of  Pakistan his ancestors belongd to Bhatia clan of Rajput from Paneli village in Kathiawar, Gujrat. Many Pakistani politicians belong to Rajput clans who served as Prime Minister of Pakistan. First elected Prime Minister of Pakistan Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was Bhutta Rajput of  Larkana, Sindh Momammad Khan Junejo the 11th Prime Minister of  Pakistan was Junejo Rajput of Sindh. In politicss of Pak occupie politic occupied d Kashmir, Kashmir, Muslim Rajputs played a significant roles the leading politician in POK, Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan belong to Muslim Rajput clan. Muslim Rajputs have been recognized in history as the warrior aristocracy,, and were designated by the aristocracy British Empire as a Martial Race and recruited into the Imperial Army. Muslim Rajputs have been engaged in the Pakistani military in large numbers, reaching ranks of Generals and the highest grade, as 7th Chief of Army Staff  General TikkaKhan and the 10th Chief of  Army Satff General Asif Niwaz Khan Janjua. Conversion of Muslim Rajputs: Various Rajput clans had converted to Islam during the early 12th century and since conversion have remained loyal to their faith. They were converted to Islam by the Muslim Suf i missionaries of  the famed Chistiya, Qadriya orders and many others reasons. Some conversions also took place for political reasons. The Delhi Sultanate and later Mughal Dynasty encouraged the martial clans to convert to Islam. Conversions to Islam continued into the 19th century even during the period of the British Raj.

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Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru mentioned, “The “T he fa fact ct of su subs bseq eque uent nt co conv nver ersi sion on to other faiths, did not deprive them of this heritage; just as the Greeks, after their conve conversion rsion to Chris Christiani tianity ty,, did not lose pride in the mighty achievements of their ancest ancestors, ors, of the Itali Italians ans in the great days of the Roman Republic and ea rl y em pi re .. .C hr is ti an s, Je ws , Parsees, Moslems. Indian Indian converts to these re religions ne never ce ceased to to be be Indian on account of a change of their faith.” ('Discovery of India' oxford unipress, 1985). He also mentioned his personal experience about the Muslim Rajputs as, "I grew to know; the Rajput peasant and petty landholder, still proud of his race and ancestry, even though he might have changed his faith and adopted Islam. More importantly he bears testament to the fact that despite his change of faith, a Rajput is still a Rajput.” Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru has also referenced the impact of mass appeal of th e Isl am in the proce ss of conversion, as, "The impact of of the invaders of the north-west and Islam on India had been considerable. It pointed out and shown up the abuses that had crept up into Hindu society-t he petrifaction petrifa ction of caste, untouc untouchabilit hability y, excl usiv usivene eness ss carr carried ied to fan fantast tastic ic lengths. lengt hs. The idea of brother brotherhood hood of Islam and of the theore theoretical tical equalit equality y of its adhere adherents nts made a powerfu powerfull appeal appeal,, especially especial ly those of the Hindu fold who were denied any resembl resemblance ance of equal treatment.” treatm ent.” He also indicated the conversion of Hindu upper castes to Islam, "Some individuals belonging to the higher castes also adopted the new faith, either because of a real change of belief, or or,, more often, for political economic reasons though all their social structure was based on the group

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(caste/social class), in matters of religion they were highly individualistic. It is worth noting as a rule, conversions conversions to Islam were group group conversio conve rsions. ns. Among the upper castes individuals may change their religion al mo st an en ti re vil la ge wo ul d convert...group life as well as their functions functi ons conti continued nued as befor before e with only minor variations with regards worship etc.” Sir Denzil Ibbetson repre.(2002) has referenced the prominent positions of the Muslim Rajputs and indicated their courage and a nd valiant martial martia l tradition, and similarity with the Hindu counterparts in some regions. J.M. Wikeley in 'Punjabi Muslman' (1991) has stated, “The general conversion of the Muhammadan Rajputs from Hinduism is supposed to have taken place towards the end of the 13th or early 14th century AD. The Muhammadan conquests undoubtedly accelerated this change of religion, but the preaching of several renowned Muhammadan Muham madan saint saints, s, especi especially ally Bawa Farid of Pakpattan, whose eloquence drew large numbers to hear him, helped considerably to this end” The majority of Rajputs in Rajouri District is Muslim Rajputs their origin is claimed from Rajisthan, Gujrat, Punjab,, Haryana and H.P. Punjab H.P. Though the Muslim faith is against belief of a person being born from Sun, Moon, and fire, but even Muslim Rajputs feel proud of  being belonging to Rajput Clan. They often reference the bravery of their ancestors in the battle fields of the past and they extend equal status to the parallel clan that is Hindu Rajputs. At the time of any conflict with non Rajput communities, the Hindu and Muslim Rajputs communities emotionally unite to protect their prestige. Still they like to serve in armed forces forces.. While observing the attitude of the Rajputs of 

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Rajouri district that is martial in spirit with wi th a fi fier erce ce pr prid ide e of li line neag age e an and d tradition it is not out of place to mention here quotation of Encyclopedia Br it an ni ca , (1 91 1e di ti on ), “T he tradition of common ancestry permits a poor Rajpu Rajputt yeoma yeoman n consi consider der himse himself lf as well born as any powerful landholder of  his clan, and superi superior or to any high offici official al of the professional classes. No race in India can boast of finer feats of arms or brighter deeds of chivalry chivalry,, and they form one of the main recruiting fields for the Indian army of the day day.. They consider any occupation other than that of arms or government derogatory to their dignity, and consequently during the long period of peace which has followed the establishment of the British rule in India, they have been content to stay idle at home instead of  taking up any of the other professions in which they might have come to the front”. Rajputs of Rajouri District have been divided into two religious communities, i.e., Hindu Rajputs and Muslim Rajputs. Both the Rajput communities have common caste titles and common origin. Caste Stratification Among Muslim Rajputs: Historic Hist orically ally Musli Muslim m Rajp Rajputs uts of  Rajouri District have been classified into two major groups repre represented sented by two linguistic division i.e, Pahari and Gojri, on account of regional variation the clan speaking Gojri language is not considered Rajputs in the area. The Muslim Rajputs have been stratified into various sub castes such as, Jarral, Malik, Chauhan, Janjua, Chib, Domal, Gakhar, Feerozal, Khokhar, Manhas, Bhatti, Thakkar, Kamlak, Salahria, Manial, and Thakyal etc. As such there are are more than 36 subcastes of Muslim Rajputs exist in Rajouri District. Still the caste hierarchy has been maintained by the Muslim Rajput clan on the pattern of Hindu Rajputs.

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Jarral Rajputs: Historically were the Rajas of Rajouri. The majority of Muslim Jarral Rajputs settled in Rajouri, while on the other hand who have not embraced Islam scatteredly settled in Hos hia rpu r, Sh iwa lik s, Kal lan oor (Punjab). It is also claimed that Bandala clan of chamba (H.P) also traces its origin from Jarral Rajputs. They are Chandervanshi Panduas Clan. After Paul dynasty Rajouri was ruled by Jarals who happened happene d to be the descen descendents dents of Raja “Jir-Rao”. The first Jarral Rajput who embraced Islam was Raja Sab Sinah, from the fifth generation of Raja Jir Rao. He embraced Islam along with some relatives and his own son Neel Sinah, in 1174. A.D., during during the period of Sultan Shahab- udin Ghori. Later on the name of Neel Sinah was converted as Nooruddin. Nooruddin ruled Rajouri and Kingdom Kingdom Remained Remained in the hands of his clan for seven centuries. Jarral Rajputs settled in Town of Rajouri (Ander Kote), Badhoon, sunderbani Tehsil, Behrote, Dand Kote, Dahral and Various other Villages of District Rajouri. They extend Matrimonial Relation with parallel Rajput clan Maliks. Malik Rajputs: Malik Rajputs were the Hindus came f rom Punjab and Haryana. Akbar gave a title of Malik to a clan of of Rajputs; they were were given given preference in Akbar's Army and deputed on the crossing points of Kashmir vally on the high reaches of Pir panchal. Later on, they embraced Islam. This clan is located in the higher parts of Rajouri District lying at the foot of Pirpanchal Range. The place is known by the name of the Rajput clan as Darhal Malkan. They have also settled in the other Districts of the State like Doda, Poonch, Vally of Kashmir and some villages of  district Rajouri. Chauhan Rajputs: After the defeat of Prithvi Raj chauhan by Mohammad

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Ghori in 1193 A.D., and consequent downfall of chauchan Kindom at Delhi, the clan was probably split up in to small groups, who, when arrived in other States could not be treated at par with the rul ruling ing rac races. es. In Kan Kangra gra the Cha Chauha uhan n Rajputs claim to be first grade Rajputs and have matrimonial relation with Katoch (Bigley (Bigley,, A.H and Cunningham 1972). Most of the Chauhans live in Jammu and Kashmir Kashmir and some of them have emb race d Isl am. The y are recognized as sub caste of Gujjars. Their conversion is considered to be the period of the down fall of Prothivi Raj Chauhan during th e dominancy of  Mohammad Ghori in 1193 A.D., they are settled in adjoining area of Pir Panchal, Dodason Dodaso n Bala, Mangot Mangota, a, Fethe Fethepur pur,, Behrote, Dharal and Nadian etc. Their means of substances is cattle rearing. Some are leading semi nomadic life they never extend matrimonial relation with other Rajputs except Salaria, Kataria, Soods, Sango etc which are the sub castes of Muslim Gujjars. Janjua Rajputs: Rajput clan claim descent from Raja Mal, a Rathore Rajputs who migrated from Kanoj early in the 10th century during the period of Sultan Mohamood and embraced Islam. Janjua Rajputs are settled in Rajouri and Poonch district have common historical background. They extend matrimonial relation with Khokhar Rajputs. Chib Rajputs: Origin of Chib Rajputs can be traced from Raja Dharm chand alias Shadab Khan of Bhimber. The Name of Chib Rajputs as a clan started after the name of Raja Chib Chand 7th descendent of Raja Dharm Chand. They are mostly settled in Daghwar,, havalie, Dehrakote, Rajdhani, Daghwar Shahdra Shrief, and some other villages of District Rajouri. The accurate period of their conversion is not available but it is expected that like other Muslim

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Rajputs their conversation is believed to be taken place during the Muslim Rule in India. They maintain familial and matrimonial relation with other Muslim Rajputs. Domal Rajputs: Domal Rajputs are originally a branch Janjua Rajputs. Since the time immemorial they were Hindu Rajputs. Among Muslim Rajputs Dharm Chand and Purabh chand were two brothers hailing from the 7th generation of Raja Chib Chand of  Bhimber Pakistan. Dharm chand the elder brother of Purabh chand first embraced Islam at Delhi and could not return to Bhimber because of familial conflicts. It is also believed that he was killed on the way while retuning to Bhimber. When the members of the community came to know that Dharm chand embraced Islam at Delhi, they made Purabh Chand the king of the Bhimber. Later on Purabh chand also converted to Islam after becoming the King of Bhimber and changed the name from Purabh chand to Dom Khan, (second son of his father) thus Domal Rajputs claimed their descendency from Raja Dom Dom Khan, Khan, after some time he migrated from Bhimber and settled in Rajouri Village Rajdhani. Raja Dom Khan was buried at Narrouni a small village Near Rajdhani. Domal Rajputs still celebrate his death anniversary every year by offering Fateha at his grave. Domal Rajputs reside in various villages of Manjakote block of Tehsil Rajouri and constituting about 35% of  total Musli Muslim m Populat ion of Tehsil Rajouri. Gakkhar Rajputs: the clan is considered to be the off springs of  Sultan Gohar of Asphan Iran, (Tarikh Aqwam e Poonch 1941), Seven generation of Sultan Ruled Tibet and Kashmir, the last ruler of the clan was Rustam Gakkhar. But Sir Lepel Griefen

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disagreed the claim of the clan and stated that two sons of Sultan Sikandar Sikandar,, were Sultan Ali Shah and Shahzada Shai Khan. They were also known by the names of 'Sultan Zainulabedin' and 'Budd shah' they used to quarrel among themselves Shai Khan took support of Hindu Rajput Raja Jasrat Gakkhar, and became the king of Kashmir. Jasrat Gakkhar along with his tribe entered the Kashmir first. Thus Gakkhar Rajputs of  Rajouri are the progenies Jasrat Gakkhar. They remained Hindus up to 1008 A. D. and embraced Islam during the period of Shabuddin Ghori '(Tabqat '(Tabqat e Akbari vol.3, 1920) after the downfall of  Mughal rule in Punjab the Gakkhar moved from Punjab towards different parts of Jammu and Kashmir State. They have matrimonial relations with other Muslim Rajputs. They settled in Shahdra Shrief, Rajdhani, Saj, Behrote Nagrota, Dahral, Budhal and various other villages of Rajouri District. Feerozal Rajputs: the Rajput clan is also considered a branch of Gukhar Rajputs. Feerozal Rajputs of of Rajouri District are the generation of Gukhar Firoze Khan. This Rajput clan embraced Islam during the period of Sultan Shabuddin Ghori. They settled in various villages of Poonch and Rajouri such as, Kallar morah, Kullutta, Pemrote, Darian Narr Feerozalan etc, Chandyal, Behrote, Lah and Saj. They have established matrimonial Ralation with other Muslim Rajputs. Khokhar Rajputs: There are two branches of Khokhars one is known as Kutub Shai Khokhar and Rajput Khokhar Khokhar.. Kutab Shah married the daughter of Hindu Rajput Raja. The off springs from them are even today known as Kutab Shai Khokhar Khokhar.. Rajputs Khokhar were the domiciles of India and were originally the followers of Hinduism, later on they embraced Islam and with the passage of

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time most of them settled near Jehlam, Pindadan Khan, Ahmed Abad and Pothar Pothar.. In Rajouri District Khokhars are residing in various villages. Marriage among Kutab shai Khokhar and Rajput Khokhar is permissible. They constitute about 4% of Muslim Rajput population. Manhas Rajputs: Manhas Rajputs claim cla im the their ir des descen centt fro from m lor lord d Ram Rama a of Ayodhya. Ayo dhya. It is also said that Jamwa Jamwals ls are also descendants of Manhas Rajputs. Muslim Manhas Rajputs of Rajouri Rajouri and Poonch are the descendants of Raja Joug Rao, who was from the 58th generation of Raja Jamboo lochan. Raja joug Rao had two sons, Millan Hans and Surej Hans Maharaja Hari Singh was from 35th generation of Surej Hans. Manhas clan belonged to the generation of Mil Millan lan Han Hanss bei being ng des descen cendan dantt of Millan Hans they were known by the title of Manhas. Manhas Rajputs of Rajouri and Poonch are Muslims but those who live in Jammu are Hindu Rajputs. They performed certain rituals similar to that of Hindu Rajputs at the time of Marriage and other occasions. They have matrimonial relation with with other Muslims except Gujjars. Bhatti Rajputs: The Rajput clan traces its origin from lord Krishna (Tariekh (T ariekh aqwam -e- Poonch 1941) Bhatti / Bhatti is a Rajput caste and is one of the largest tribes among Rajputs in India. It is also a prominent Gujjars and Jat gotra. They are found in North India and Pakistan. Rawal Jaisal Singh was a descendant of the Bhati Rajput clan. He founded the city city of Jaisalmer in 1156 AD., he built a fort on a hill called Trikuta. Bhati Jats were horse riders and warriors. Their reign spread to the Punjab and beyond, to Afghanistan. Most of the Bhatti Rajputs are Muslim along with significant Sikh, Hindu and Christian populations. The Muslim and Christian population of Punjabi Bhatti is

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pred omin ominantl antl y in Pakist Pakist an. Bhatti Bha tti Rajputs of Rajouri district are Muslims and claim their origin in Punjab and Rajasthan. A section of Muslim Bhatti Rajputs is associated with Ahmedi School of thought. Other Muslim Rajputs restrict matrimonial relation to Ahmedi and Gujjar Bhatties. Th ak ka r Ra jp ut s: T he cl an connects their origin with Hindu Thakers, which is considered to be a superior Hindu Rajput caste in Jammu. Thakkar Rajputs claim that before their conversion to Islam they were Hindu Thakers. In Rajouri District District they came from Samba District, due to which both the Hindu and Muslim Thakers use the title of Sambyal Thakers and Sambyal Thakers respectively. respectively. Majority of this cas te a re s et tl ed i n Ra jd ha ni, Thannamandi and Saj villages of Rajouri District. Kamlak Rajput: Majority of the Kamlak Rajputs settled in Azamatabad a village situated in north of  Thannamandi Tehsil. The clan claim that they are the descendants of Raja Azamat Khan Kamlak, who migrate from Budhal to this village, presently some Hindu and Muslim Kamlak Rajputs are residing in different villages of Tehsil Budhal. Both the communities claim common origin and have some common customs and rituals. Socio-cultural And Economic Changes: The socio-cultural and economic condition of Muslim Rajputs has been studied with the reference of  familial, matrimonial educational, political and economic aspects of  Muslim Rajputs to make the study limited Family and Changing Pattern: The family is a complex and dynamic institution in India and for many decades, several studies were carried out to understand this complexity.

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Family performs same functions every where. In the past joint family was a common pattern among Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. It consisted of father,, mother and two or more married father sons, their wives and children. They ate together at a common hearth and shared share d a singl single e house, owned land in common and worked together in the fields. The young married sons continued to live with their parents and reared their children in common courtyards. The old women enjoyed the commanding charge of giving daily ration of food to daughters in law in extended extende d famil family y. The father runs the farms and remained active authoritative figure until they are very old. Among Muslim Rajputs generally after the death of the father the joint property was divided among his sons, but in some family's property was not divided, rather the eldest sons of the family took charge of the head of the family and all the younger extended full support, cooperation and respect to him. But with passage of time a major changes have taken place in the familial aspects of the Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. The first break in the joint family system usually comes when a man and his wife decide to have a separate hearth this step may be taken with overt good nature and willingness on both the sides and may be rationalized on the basis of  convenience, some time it results from tensions and quarrels among the women of the family. fa mily. Viewing the change in the family pattern, after 1989, the Data indicated that Majority Majority of the respondents 63% observe nuclear family system and perceive that joint family system cannot justify the needs of all the members according to their income and some partial attitude of the parents

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creates long time strife among the th e brothers and sisters in the family family.. Considering the size of the family among (645) respondents 81% of the respondents are of the view that in the past family was comprised of 6 to 15 members, where as at present the size of the famil family y is compr comprised ised of 3 to five members, because the community understudy was unaware of the importance of family planning and never adopt adopted ed contr contracepti aceptive ve measur measure e to control the birth rate of the community,, but at present the people community are aware of the problems problems caused by lar ge size of the fam ily. Whi le compa com pari ring ng pas pastt wi with th the pr prese esent nt significant change has been observed in the structure of the family of Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District. In reference to the status of  Women among Muslim Rajputs, majority of the respondents 89% have elicited that in the past the women of the community were ignored in various spheres of life and birth of female child is considered as bad omen and did not enjoy liberty in the general familial and matrimonial affairs, 98% of the respondents have expressed that parental property moveable and immoveable was inherited only to the male members of the family and females were ignored in property matters, Where as at present they are dealt with the same way, enjoy the same status with some social restrictions. Thus no change has taken place in the past and present attitude of  community understudy related to the female members, as the civil laws and religious citation remain ineffective to change the attitude of the community community.. Marriage and Changing Pattern: Marriage among Muslim Rajputs is socially considered important, which is performed with certain social customs

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and rituals, the major objectives of the marriage is to perpetuate the lineage. The proposal of the marriage was initiated by the 'Barbers' who also also performed allied rituals like calling the participants with the consent of the heads of the family of Brides or Brid egr oom s. Hin du Raj put cod e dictates that Rajputs can only marry amongstt other Rajput amongs Rajputs. s. Howev However er,, tradition of marriages marriages into only one group or clan beca use of caste restrictions is not permitted in Islam theoretically,, though this should lead to theoretically a great change in the traditional Rajput marital mari tal polic policy y after conve conversion rsion.. But it is nott so no so,, as in th the e ca case se of Mu Musl slim im Ra Rajp jput utss of Rajouri District. The custom of  Rajput endogamy is still persists among Muslim Rajputs. They took wives from other dominant Aristocratic Muslim clans except Sayyed. This was observed that some Rajput clans of Punjab intermarried into other clans of foreign descent. However, Muslim Rajputs of  Rajouri District still follow endogamous pattern of Marriage, rarely they get wives from other castes but don't give daughters to them. In the past only 'NIKAHA' ceremony differentiates the marriage of Muslim Rajputs from Hindu Rajputs' Other customs and ritual were performed commonly by both the communities, such as 'Sehara Bandhi', 'Drum beating', keeping swords on the shoulder of Rajput Bridegroom by himself at the time of 'Baraat', wearing special dress of same colour by all the 'Baraties', taking services of Molvi and Pandits and some other customary mischief were made at the occasion of  marriage. Traditionally among the Muslim Rajputs dates of marriage had to be communicated to the relatives and friends eight days before the actual date of marriage, otherwise the invitation was not acceptable to them.

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After 1989 some changes have taken place in the matrimonial systems and allied rituals among Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District due to rapid increase in urbanization in the District and advocacy of 'Jammat Tableegh', in rural areas. In matrimonial context majority of the respo responden ndents ts 86% 86% elicite elicited d that presently the services of the barbers are not considered important and now marriage proposal are initiated by friends and relatives. in the process of mate selection 87% of the respondents have stated that in the past educational accomplishment of the boys and girls was not the criteria in the settlement of marriages among Muslim Mus lim Raj Rajput putss of Raj Rajour ouri, i, but now the educational accomplishment is taken in to account at the time of mate selection, the respondents 91% are of the view that they observe caste endogamous pattern of marriage marriage and they are are against against the encouragement of Rajput exogamy. In the pattern of marriage, the performance of rituals and other customs like, divorce and dowry system majority of the respondents 88 % hold the view that on account of the preaching of Jammat Tableegh and impact of the militancy in the area the performance of un Islamic rituals like Sehra Bandi, Drum beating and allied rituals have been restricted, 82% of the respondents prefer monogamy as in the past having more than one wife was a common practice, 91% of the respondents have stated that the rate of  divorce were less in the past but increasing presently, due to the increasing number of working women, selection of mate at infancy stage and early marriages due to the threat of  terrorism and rapid increase in urbanization in the District. 84% of the

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respondents are of the view that in the past there was no dowry system but now the dowry system among the Rajputs is a common practice. Thus the significant change has taken place in the insti institutio tutions ns of famil family y and some aspects of marriage that has been observed by the comparison of pa st an d pr es en t f am il ia l a nd matrimonial patterns. Educational Standard and Change: Educational status of Muslim Rajputs of Rajouri District was relatively low since the past. They were not encouraged to send their children to the school by the educated people of  the community community.. The Literacy rate among the Muslim Rajputs is less than th e ot he r ca st es (G uj ja rs an d Kashmiries) of the District. Majority of  the Rajput students could not complete even their school education up to the 10th level, so dropped out from the school due to the financial constraints of the parents and uncertainty of future career. The data (M.Phil Dissertation 1994) indicates that, 15% to 20% of the children's population of the Rajputs went to school. Among total drop-out children, Rajputs drop-out children constituted 73% of the total drop-out children of the district from first to primary level. Among total Rajputs drop-out children of the same level, female drop-out children constituted 76%. The major causes behind the victimization, was the geographical location, extreme poverty, traditional beliefs, orthodoxy and mass illiteracy. They were unable to send their wards particularly the girls' children at the distance places to get education and they prefer the children to graze the cattle in the field or (male children) to work as labourer and earn money to fulfill the basic needs of the family. More over, over, there was lack of educational

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facilities, only one degree college 13 higher secondary Schools and few middle and primary schools were in the District. Change has taken place after 199798 in educational sphere of the community.. The educational facilities community have been increased in the area by the State Sta te gov govern ernmen mentt wit with h res result ult tha thatt at present the literacy rate in the district is 57.65, total educational institutions in the District are 1250, including 04 Degree colleges( Education department and Digest statistics 2005- 07). A rapid change has taken place in attitude of  the people towards education by the dint of mass migration of the people to the town of Rajouri in 1997- 98 due to the impact of militancy in the area. Majority of the Muslim Rajputs took refuge from the hilly and rural areas and settled in the City of Rajouri and Jammu, those who were financially well-off availed the educational facilities of the urban area and poor Rajputs get exposure of the city life and started working as manual labuorer, admitted their children in the city schools. Viewing change in the educational standard of Muslim Rajputs, the data has indicated that 83% 0f the respondents are of the view that in the past members of the community were socially and economically backward due to illiteracy and lack of educational facilities but at present the community members are aware of the values of  education due to which they are encouraging their wards to seek more and more education. Majority of the Respondents 96% hold the view that in the past the Muslim Rajputs and their counter parts Gujjars were leading similar way of life but presently Rajputs are lagging behind in all the developmental aspects in general and

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educational sphere in particular due to the prov provisio ision n of Sch Schedu eduled led Tribe reservation to Gujjars and depriving depriving The Rajputs under the banners of 'Paharies' as their children are un able to compete them and feel insecure future career.. 82% of the respondents hold the career view that in the past Rajputs were not giving prefe rence to the women education and still the problem persists as only few community members are encouraging the girls to go to the schools schoo ls and colla collages ges to seek educat education, ion, 58% of the respondents are of the view that In the past community members force their children to work in the field or to do manual labourer to fulfill the basic ameni amenity ty of the family inste instead ad of sending sendin g schoo schooll and still the pract practice ice is common in hilly and remote areas, they are not aware of the legal restriction on the child labour labour.. Thus little improvement has been made by the government of J&k by providing local reservation to the Resident of Backward Areas and expansion of educational facilities at broader level due to which change has taken place in educational standard of  the community in urban area of the District. But Majority of the Rajputs in remote area is not aware of the government facilities that have been granted for them. Thus the change has taken place in the attitude of present generation more over they have the sense of competition. Economic Status and Change: The Economic condition of Muslim Rajputs of District Rajouri was relatively better before 1947; the community members were serving in army or holding agricultural assets. It declined with the impact of war of 1947, Majority Majority of the Rajputs were the land lords and having sufficient land for cultivations, in the past other communities were working in their fields as agricultural tenants some

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were bonded laborer from generations. The Indo Pak war of 1965 and 1971 and land ceiling process in J&K have also badly impacted the major agriculture economy of the community, since the communit comm unit y w as econ omica lly self sufficient before 1990, due to political turmoil in the state the economy of the community comm unity got major setback, setback, the people were forcibly pushed from the villages and their crops were destroyed during peak season by the army in conducting condu cting searc search h opera operation tion for the militants. The people took refuge in the town in miserable condition. the major occupation of the District's population is agriculture and allied activities (Census 200 1), due to the Geo gra phi cal dis adv an tag e, mas s pov ert y and illiteracy the Rajputs are economically backward, now the small farmers of the community have little pieces of land holdings, kacha houses, most of the agricultural area is located on the hill slopes where irrigation and tractor facilities can not be availed. On the other oth er hand due to sno snow w fal falll in hil hilly ly are area a only Kharief crop is possible in their fields, in addition to that there is lack of  employment, and manual workers go outside the state in search of job. At present Major economy of the people is agriculture but it can be expected that a single source of income which cannot fulfill the basic amenities of a particular community does not deserve to be recognized as the economy of the community. On the basis of the study, the whole economic structure of Muslim Rajputs of the District Rajouri is divided into four categories: (i) Rajputs with Agricultural activities, (ii) Rajputs with Government services. (iii) Rajputs with cattle rearing, (iv) Rajputs working as manual labourer. 48% of the total working population is engaged in agriculture economy while, 13% of the working Population is engaged in

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government services, where as, 23% of  the total population depend upon cattle rearing, 16% of the total population is working as manual labourer labourer.. Among them 09% of the labourers are working outside the state, as, in Mumbai, Punjab, and H.P., H.P., on account of non availability of work avenues in the State. The major porti portion on of the youth is unemployed), the economy of the District is not satisfactory and more than 60% of the population is living be low th e pov er ty lin e. (Di str ict Statistic and pl anning, data 2004-05) The youths of the area is badly effected by the prevailing limited economic resources. Due to extreme poverty and unempl oyment some pe ople even indulge in illegitimate sources of  earning, either they smuggle forest wood or join join militancy militancy in the State for their means of subsistence. Viewing the change in the economy of the community under study data has indicated that Majority of the respondents 93% hold the view that in th e pa st , ma jo r ec on om y wa s agriculture but with the passage of time and increase in population, the community members have engaged in other economic activities, like Government services and manual skill and un skilled labour and a section is working out side the State due to non availability of work avenue. 86% of the respondents admitted that in the past their economic condition was not progressive because there were no proper economic planning or programmes actively initiated by the Government, but now the government is expected to be serious in rehabilitation of economic lose which happened during militancy(after 1989),by initiating various developmental and rehabilitative measures and programmes. 89% of the respondents are of the view that the

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women of the community were not permitted to engage themselves in any economic activity activity outside the home, due to which the community was economically backward but with the mass urb aniz atio n (199 7-9 8) and victim vic timiza izatio tion n of wid widowh owhood ood due to militancy in the area women have star ted takin g part in econ omic activities activ ities to nouris nourish h their their children children and slightly improving the economy of the family.. 76% of the respondents hold the family view that in the past youth were not aware of the available government facil ities, for improvi improving ng econ economic omic condition, but at present various developmental programmes have been launched laun ched at rural level like self employmen empl oymen t sche schemes, mes, IRDP IRDP,, ICDS ICDS,, NREGA etc. and people are get aware aware of the benefits to some extend as well as fast track recruitment scheme have been launched to reduce the unemployment by the state government. Thus it is observed that the slight change has taken place in the economic sphere of the community due to the efforts and rehabilitative rehabilitative measures of the government to compensate the economic econo mic lose due to milit militancy ancy in the areas. The political system of the community understudy is not different from other communities of the area, the change has also been observed in the political setup of Muslim Rajputs. Since the past Muslim Rajputs have effective representation in the national and state politics holding position of MLA, Minister Minis ter and Speak Speaker er in state assem assembly bly.. At present Raja Shabir Ahmed Khan, MO S be lo ng s to Mu sl im Ra jp ut community of District Rajouri. More over the present youth is politically politically aware than tha hatt of the past. Changing Factors: Social change is the law of nature, it occurs in every

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society. Var society. Various ious attempts are made to analyse socio-cultural and economic changes in terms of specific models which are based on the experience of chan ge in a part icul ar socie s ocie ties . Generally Genera lly soci sociologi ologists sts are focusi focusing ng on the quest questions ions relat relating ing to chang change, e, direction and rate of change and factors responsibl respo nsible e for bringi bringing ng soci social al change change.. Viewing View ing the facto factors rs of change in socio socio-cultural and economic pattern of Muslim Rajputs, it has been emphasized that socio-cultural changes are brought about due to the cumulative impact of a host of interrelated factors. Generally Generally,, the fac tor s li ke, dem ogr aph ica l, technological, geographical, ecological factors and the process of urbanization and industrialization bring about social change in all the societies of the world. After 1997-98 a large scales shifting of the Muslim Rajputs from remote and hilly areas to the city of Rajouri Rajou ri due to mili militancy tancy allied facto factors rs in the areas. The chunk of population from Rajput dominant tehsils of the District has changed demographic structure of the Rajour Rajourii town permane ntly or temporarily to avail the urban facilities of education, and struggling for the improveme nt of their social and economic condition. Thus urbanization in Rajouri is the major factor of bringing about change in the attitude of the people,, the term urbani people urbanizatio zation n refer referss to the movement of population from agricultura agric ulturall to indust industrial rial work and from rural to urban places of residence either by the pull or push factors. It is genera generally lly empha emphasized sized that the change that has taken place due to the impact of urbanization urbanization is considered develo dev elopme pmenta ntall asp aspect ect of cha change nge and development is defined not only in terms of economic dimensions but also in te terms of of so socio-cultur ura al di dimen enssions ns,, until recently recently,, the popular notion was that economic growth was a sufficient

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and necessary condition to stimulate development in all other institutions of  society.. This has been proved in correct society in present study study.. The urbanization has impacted the structure of the family and changed it from joint to nuclea nuclearr fo rm an d als o dis ca rd ed so me traditional and futile practices, practices, The marriage marr iage patter pattern n and ritua rituals ls in contex contextt of endoga endogamy my and other allie allied d ritua rituals ls are also impacted by the urbanization with the result that 3% to 6% of the marriages among Muslim Rajputs are performed out of castes, with Kashmiries and other non Rajputs in Rajouri District. It is considered consi dered a major change among the people of the area. In regard to education the change has been observed in the general out look of the parents and students due to urban soci social al conta contacts. cts. In econom economic ic sphere the impact of urbanization is not proved fruitful but considered as the pro cess of reh abil itat ion of the economic lose caused by leaving the agricultural land without cultivation, only the government employees and skilled and unskilled manual labourer could manage house holds in the town. Thus abrupt migration of the people from rural to urban led to the both positive and negative consequences. Negative consequences are associated with the state of loss of ones culture, hom es, liv eli hoo d and eco nom ic belongings. The positive consequences are th at th e pe opl e ha ve ne w perceptions and aspirations in the realms of all aspects of social life. Procedure of the Study: The pr es en t st ud y is ba se d on th e exploratory design that includes survey of the literature related to the community understudy, understudy, experienced survey,, contains informal interaction survey interaction with experienc nced ed per erssons and ana naly lysses of insight stimulating cases among a large population of the community

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under study study.. The Process of change has been exam ined on the basis of comparison of administ administrative rative data related to study of pre and post period of 1989. The primary data has been collected collec ted by using Intervie Interview w Schedu Schedule le compri com prised sed of item itemss related related to soci socioocultural and economic aspects of the community.. In all 645 respondents community constituting sample of the study as heads of the households belonging to fourr Mus fou Muslim lim Raj Rajputs puts pop popula ulated ted teh tehsil silss of the District have been interviewed. The Data has been analyzed and interpreted on the basis of item analy analysis sis method method.. Conclusion: On the basis of the above discussions it can be concluded that Muslim Rajputs of District Rajouri ha ve ric h soc io- cu lt ura l hi sto ry. Historically whole Muslim Rajputs have two linguistic divisions, i.e., Gojri and Pahari. The Gojri speaking section is not

considered Rajput clan due to regional variation vari ation.. The commu community nity is strat stratified ified into various sub castes and still majority is practicing pra cticing caste endoga endogamy my,, though th ough some customs and ritual ritualss have been changed. change d. The structu s tructure re of the th e joint family fam ily has bee been n chang changed ed int into o nuc nuclea learr family.. The traditional educational family system is also in transformation; change has taken place in political system, still remarkable change cannot be claimed par ticu lar ly in eco nom y of the community instead of the Government efforts. Socio-cultural and economic back wardn ess' among the Musl im Rajputs was due to their traditional beliefs and social practices, mass illiteracy,, unapproachable ge ographical illiteracy region, unawareness, poverty, and orthodoxy. Various factors are responsible for bringing about sociocultural change among the community

but Major factor that played significant role after 19961996-97 97 is Rapid urbani urbanizatio zation n and allied push factors, due to political turmoil in the State State,, that uproo uprooted ted a large section secti on of the commu community nity from their settlement settle ment took refuge in Rajou Rajouri ri town. Thus it is suggested that the government should provide more and more facilities for the upliftment of the community by providing Scheduled Tribe Status to the community at par with their counterpart Gujjars. Awareness campaign by NGOs and enlightened members of the community should be launched at mass level in the area for general awareness of the community to get the benefits of  modern techn technology ology and prevai prevailing ling schemess opera scheme operative tive in the area. Pol Politic itical al leaders should be sincere to watch the benefits of the Community at state and national level.

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