In pre-colonial India, people’s protests against the rulers and their officials were not uncommon—high land revenue demand by the State, corrupt practices and hard attitude of the officials being some of the instigating factors.
The colonial law and judiciary safeguarded the interest of the government and its collaborators—the landlords, the merchants and money-lenders. Thus the people left with no options, chose to take up arms and defend themselves.
The word ‘civil’ encompasses everything which is not related to defence/military, but here we have included those uprisings which were generally led by deposed native rulers or their descendants, former zamindars, landlords, poligars (holders of territory in South India).
