This Article is written by Harmanjot Kaur Kang. The article has been edited by Khushi Sharma (Trainee Associate, Blog iPleaders) and Vanshika Kapoor (Senior Managing Editor, Blog iPleaders).

Introduction

Have you ever been thrown out of the corporate sector? Did you ever have a heartbreak? Has anyone ever insulted you?

Throughout life, we go through millions of such experiences. Here comes the story where the revenge of a man named Chanakya turned into an ‘Empire’.

The Mauryan Empire was the first empire that was ruling the whole of North India. The story of the Mauryan Empire starts from the life of Kautilya who is also known as Chanakya. He was a graduate of Takshila University. Once he went to the code of Dhana Nanda where he came to attend the alms-giving ceremony. However, King Dhana Nanda, looking at his ugly appearance refused to give him any offerings. This was very disheartening for Chanakya in the beginning. Owing to the disrespect of Chanakya in front of all the Council present in front of the Empire of King Dhanananda, he vowed to take revenge from King Dhanananda. And here he decided that he would have someone who would conquer the territory of King Dhanananda, and here starts the story of Chandragupta Maurya. Chanakya started training Chandragupta Mauryan and established the Mauryan Dynasty.

The Mauryan Empire is one of the most powerful empires in the whole history. No doubt it was one of the most efficient administrative systems in the history of the world. The designation of how the rulers were appointed and distributed among the masses was very beautifully designed. Even today we see instances that there is a division that is in congruence with the Mauryan Empire. 

Governance in the Mauryan Empire was based on the division of power. However, the system was overall centralized. The following is how there is a division in power.

Administrative System

The administrative system was divided into three main parts which are king, Council of Ministers, and other officials.

King

Of the highest authority, he was having full control over all departments he was entitled to have the regular payment of tax and all the taxes which were collected. The commander in chief of military services. His life was full of pomp and splendour as on special occasions he was given a salute from 24 elephants. However, owing to such a life of luxury Kautilya’s dictum lies in: ‘The happiness of people to be the ultimate aim of a prince.’

Division under the Council of Ministers

Prime Minister: He presented invaluable advice and assistance to the king on various occasions.

Purohita: He looked after the religious affairs

Senapati: He was the commander-in-chief of the army

Samaharta: He was the Finance Minister. He collected taxes in the administration.

Sannidhata: He was the Minister of Royal Treasury. He looked after royal godowns, jails, and armouries.

Dauvarika: He was the Minister of Royal palace and household affairs.

Karnataka: He was the Minister of Mines and Factories.

Antapala: He headed the frontier in defence services.

Dandapala: He was the Chief officer of police.

Pradhatri: He was the inspector general of prisons.

Vyavaharika: He was the law minister or Hon’ble Chief Justice at that time.

Antarveshika: He was the Chief of Royal Harem.

Other Officials

Besides the above-mentioned officials, there were other ministers such as mahamatras, adhiaksha, amatyas, etc. Samaharta was the expert who appointed the minister of finance and Adhiakhas were the officials who were experts and chose who should be appointed as the tax collector.

Military Services

The military services were also very developed during the Mauryan Empire. There were foot soldiers, cavalry, infantry. People were aware of the use of bows and arrows, Trishul and swords, etc. The rulers of the modern Empire kept a very large and powerful army. There were about 60000 to 30000 cavalry, 9000 elephants, 8000 chariots. A total of about 6,90,000 troops were kept under this rule. The military was divided into a council of six boards, namely;

Patti or Padati: These were the infantry soldiers, who formed part of the army.

Ashva: The word ‘Ashva’ comes from the Sanskrit word which means horse. The cavalry was named ‘ashva’ during the Mauryan Empire.

Ratha: Ratha constitutes the chariots and the army who presented their service under this domain.

Hasti: The word ‘Hasti’ comes from the Sanskrit word which means elephant. The cavalrymen who used elephants in the war as their transport were termed as ‘hasti’ during the Mauryan Empire.

Transportation: There was a specially designed army that dealt with the transportation of injured and sick people, food, and arms to the soldiers.

Navy: The board of soldiers which form a group during the sea-battles comes under this domain.

Village Administration

The village administration was headed by the following people:

Gram: This was the lowest unit of the administrative system. The head of a gram was known as Gramini or Gramik. This is similar to the panchayat head which is prevalent in the present system of administration.

Gopas: This was a collective system of 10-15 villages administered together.

Sthanika: This was an institute of Gopas collectively. In other words. It was similar to the federal structure of present-day administration.

District Administration

There were separate departments that were designated for the irrigation, treasury, education, collection of taxes, revenue, mines, and irrigation, etc. A Sthanika was the head of 1/4th of the town. A Gopa was the head of 5 to 10 villages. A Nagardhiksha or Pradeshika was the Deputy Commissioner of a district. 

Historiographies 

According to Dr RK Mukherjee: The village community functions like a self-governing corporation or a republic giving the village a healthy scope and exercise in the art of governance and management of local concerns and affairs. Thus, the Indian Society of those days was broad-based upon a truly democratic foundation. VA Smith, a renowned historian, believed that the Mauryan Empire was having stringent laws even more than the times of the Akbar Empire.

Some more interesting facts

• During the Mauryan empire, the position of women was very good. It is evident from the fact that women were kept as detectives at the place of men.
• To protect from the external invasion, the Mauryan empire decided to have capitals located in various directions. These were as follows:

North Western: Taxila

Western: Ujjain

Southern:  Suvarnagiri 

Central: Patliputra

How is it relevant in the present-day scenario?

It is no surprise that the nuances presented in the Arthashastra can be seen in various fields related to social science and diplomacy. Many political and economic theories are derived from this. Also, the diplomacy explained in it has relevance in International Relations as well.

Administrative Law

To see that today the administrative law which is governed by a similar system of division of our various organs is inspired from this. We have seen the instance of administrative law for this instance. And it is a surprise that we tend to follow the British model blindly not knowing that the Indian system was also praise-worthy. How can we be so sure about this? 

We have seen an excellent instance of administrative law in the era of the Mauryan Empire. If we talk about the definition of administrative law, it says that:

“Administrative law is the law relating to the administrative operation of the government. it is with the powers and duties of the administration, the procedure one has to follow in exercising the powers and discharging the duties and remedies available to the aggrieved person when his rights are affected by any other administrative action.’

According to Robson:

‘Administrative law should be regarded as the law relating to public administration, in the same way as the commercial or concept of law relating to commerce or land law related to land.’

According to Dicey:

‘Administrative law is denoted as that portion of a national legal system which determines the legal status and liabilities of all state officials i.e., bureaucrats.’ 

According to Sir Ivor Jennings:

Administrative law is law related to administration i.e. It determines the organization, powers, and duties of the administrative authorities.’

According to Jain and Jain:

Administrative law deals with the structure, powers, and function of the organs of administration. 

• The limit of their powers
• The method and procedure followed by them in exercising their powers and function
• The method by which their parts are controlled including legal remedies available to the person against them;
• when their rights are increased by the operation of law exercised by these bureaucratic authorities.

According to Justice Bhagwati, former CJ;

‘Administrative law is that branch of law which seeks to ensure the observance of rule of law.’

From the instances, it is very clear that administrative law has been an important part and has gained more attention in recent times. However critical analysis of Arthashasthra written by Kautilya shows the prevalence of Administrative Law back in the ages of the Mauryan Administration. The proper balance of powers and division of labour with the proper strategy such that the king was all-powerful. However, he administered with the help of due diligence on the part of the Council of Ministers and their advice.

Constitutional Law

Similar to the administration of the Mauryan Empire today, there is a system of Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister. This is governed under Article 74. This shows that apart from the contribution Apart from the Government of India Act 1935 there are many background sources on which the system of governance is dependent. Today also we see the judicial system, which was prevalent even at that time. 

73rd Amendment Act, 1993

The 73rd amendment of the constitution which was related to the village administration was present even back then in the Mauryan Period. It is no surprise that at that time Arthashastra was the governing body according to which the rules were made and administered. today we see the Constitution of India, Part IX under Article 243 to 243O governing the village administration.

74th Amendment Act, 1994

In a similar way, we see the 74th Amendment which deals with the administration at the urban level and the Municipalities. 

Thus, we see that Indian brains were also master strategists. The Mauryan Empire was the first consolidated Empire in ancient history. Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. And we have seen this naturally in the modern era, that due to internal disturbances and disunity among various small kingdoms resulted in the expansion of the East India Company. 

Arthashastra: The Bible of Administration

Arthashastra demarcates that the administration should contain the following basic requirements without which it would be disastrous to have it. Its Saptanga Theory says that the following elements are necessary for a stable administration. These are as follows:

• Raja [king]
• Amatya [the secretaries]
• Janapadas [territory]
•  Durg [fort]
• Kosha [the treasure]
• Sena [Army]
• Mitra [Friend]

In the above system of saptanga theory, the government is having a centralized bureaucracy with a king in its nucleus. The king was regarded as a soul among the seven elements of the state. Apart from all the necessities which are discussed above, it has been observed that ‘mitra’ which is defined as a friend is elaborated in a wider sense. Here, it refers to foreigndiplomacy in times of crisis or war.

Nuances in the Saptanga Theory: Relation with Political Science

According to the Max Weber:

‘A compulsory political organization with continuous operations will be called a ‘state’ in so far as its administrative staff successfully uphold the claim to the monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force in the enforcement of its order.’

Also, according to Political Theory by JS Badyal: A State is defined as the one which constitutes four basic elements of fixed territory, population, government, and sovereignty. 

It is again evident that Chanakya, who was an ancient jurist, was able to explain such complex theories way back in ancient Indian times. Even from the Harappan Civilization, the ancient Indian civilization was far more developed than its western counterparts. The well-developed system of drainage, Great Bath, intricately carved architecture are good examples to explain how Indian Culture was far more developed. However, it is because of the colonial mindset that we are more inclined to read modern history far more than ancient and medieval history. Furthermore, the importance of a good mentor, confidant and guide is emphasised in an implicit manner here.

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