Maharaja Hari Singh (1925 to 1949)
Who was he?
- Hari Singh (born 1895) was the nephew of Pratap Singh and son of Raja Amar Singh. He was educated at Mayo College, Ajmer, and succeeded to the throne in 1925.
- He was the last Dogra Maharaja.
Reforms and events
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1927 | State Subject Notification: defined who counts as a State Subject, reserving jobs and land for them. |
| 1928 to 1930 | Laws against child marriage and for compulsory primary education (1930). |
| 1930 to 1931 | He attended the Round Table Conference in London (1930, as a spokesman of the princely states). |
| 1931 | Political unrest and the 13 July killings. The Glancy Commission was set up. |
| 1932 | An order opened temples to Dalits. |
| 1934 | Praja Sabha (the first legislature) set up with limited franchise. |
| 1935 | Gilgit leased to the British for 60 years. |
| 1938 | Jammu and Kashmir Bank founded. |
| 1939 | Constitution Act widened the elected part of the Praja Sabha. |
The final years
- Hari Singh did not want to join India or Pakistan. After the tribal invasion (Oct 1947), he signed the Instrument of Accession (26 October 1947).
- In 1949 he left the State (20 June 1949) and his son Karan Singh became Regent. Hari Singh died in Bombay in 1961.
Hari Singh (1925 to 1948/49): more detail
- Before becoming king he was commander-in-chief of the army from 1915. (Some books give his rule as 1925 to 1948, others 1925 to 1949, when he left the State.)
Social reforms
Uplift of depressed classes
- In October 1932 the Maharaja declared that Harijans would be allowed to enter and worship in all temples. The order went to the Minister of Religious Institutions and the heads of pujaris of temples in Jammu and Srinagar.
- He gave scholarships and preferential treatment to depressed classes in government jobs and reserved seats in local bodies.
Child marriage: the Infant Marriage Prevention Regulation banned marriage of boys under 18 and girls under 14. Penalty: fine of Rs 1,000 or one year in prison.
Widow remarriage: a law allowed widows to remarry.
Immoral traffic: he suppressed immoral traffic in women, declared public prostitution a sin and an offence, ordered brothels closed, and gave such women training in handicrafts to be self-reliant.
Female infanticide: because of dowry, a girl was seen as a burden. He announced that for every girl child born, her parents would get an acre of land and financial help at her marriage, through the Dhandevi Memorial Fund.
Polyandry: mainly found in Ladakh; he declared it a crime.
Health: many hospitals and dispensaries, including Shri Maharaja Hari Singh Hospital, Srinagar and Shri Maharaja Gulab Singh Hospital, Jammu.
Educational reforms
- Compulsory Primary Education Act, many primary schools, scholarships, a Directorate of Education.
- Two colleges, one at Poonch and one at Mirpur; postgraduate classes in English at Government College, Srinagar.
- Maharani Tara Devi set up the Maharani Mahila College in 1944, now the Parade College for Women.
- Some students were sent abroad for training in engineering and law.
Economic reforms
- Land Alienation Act, 1928: forbade transfer of agricultural land to non-agriculturists.
- Jammu and Kashmir Bank, established in 1938.
Administrative reforms
- Praja Sabha (1934): a legislative assembly of 75 members, 33 of them elected on a very limited franchise.
- State Subject status was given to "Mulkis", the residents of J&K.
Judicial reform
- A High Court was set up in 1929 under the J&K High Court Constitution Act, 1928: one Chief Justice and two other judges.
- Lala Kanwar Sain was the first Chief Justice. The other judges were Rai Bahadur Lala Bodh Raj and Khan Sahib Aga Syed Hussain.
Keep practising
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Prepared for exam revision from standard sources, official publications and the Census. Figures and recent developments change, so check official sources before relying on them. Found a mistake? Tell us.