The People

Customs of Lushai Society

Offences In Lushai Code of Conduct
Offences against Women | Theft | Civil Dues

The recognised range of crime was neither long nor complex. The chief and his upas would try all the cases according to the customary procedure and punishment was also as per custom.  Serious crimes like murder would occur rarely.

In a village, rarely would there be cases of individual or collective physical injuries inflicted by others. Riots were unknown. Assault was rare, but it sometimes happened as a result of heaving drinking.  If it was serious a fine would be imposed. Trespassing into a house with intent to assault or abuse was punished with salam of five rupees.  If actual assault took place the offender would be punished with a fine upto forty rupees.

If the husband would beat the wife (nupui vel), she could take shelter in somebody else's house and owner of the house was duly bound to protect her.  He could apply force even to the extent of injuring the husband if the latter tried to enter the house in chase of the wife. It would not attract any punishment.

Lushais had a fine sense of personal reputation. Defamation (hmingehhia) was punishable by fine which could be a mithun and salam.  Accusation without any basis or spreading ill of any individual - like accusing one of adultery or theft or magic would be defamation if the person accusing failed to prove it. Accusing a person of taking bribe (tham) was very seriously viewed. If a person accused another of bribery and failed to prove it, he would be fined a mithun or equivalent. But taking a bribe itself was not punishable under the customary law.

Damages by fire had serious repercussions in the hills. During the dry season the village crier would go round warning the people to be cautious about fire in the house. If a house would catch fire due to carelessness of the inmates they would be fined in kind and a salam. If a person deliberately set fire to any house, he would be fined a mithun and salam. Setting fire to a jungle, deliberately or negligently, would attract the same punishment, irrespective of the actual extent of jungle damaged, as damage to a jungle by fire would make the area unfit for cultivation for a number of years and the resources would get depleted. If, however, jhum fire extended to the jungle beyond the jhum, none was punishable as such incidents would be considered accidental.

Offences against Women

Some offences against women were quite peculiar to a Lushai society.  There were cases when a man would try to take liberty with women. Some of these cases, when serious in nature, would be punishable offences.  A case could occur like this. The husband might be enjoying himself in a beer party. A man knowing it, might try to sneak, under cover of darkness, to the bed of the wife, pretending to be her husband. This was an offence (lawithlem), punishable with a mithun or forty rupees. If a young man would go into the house of a girl and would try to sleep with her, without any previous courtship, the offence (zen) would be punishable with fine of twenty rupees. Rape (pawng pawsual) was extremely rare. But there was an offence similar to rape which used to occur with regard to women have reputation of easy virtue. Young men, coming across such a woman, particularly in a village other than her own would criminally assault her, with some impunity.  This practice (zawn) was almost an accepted custom.  Attempt to seduce a married woman (minuthlem) was regarded as an offence, punishable with a fine of twenty rupees.

NEXT  »