Abstract
This chapter traces the vicissitudes of the term “corruption” in early nineteenth century colonial South Asia, in order to understand how the East India Company repurposed and deployed the term to produce colonial moral authority. British corruption was projected as moral lapse—a result of the scheming influences of the local population. On the other hand, the “native” assistants and officers were depicted as naturally corrupt and collectively immoral. By examining the issues that arose around regulating corruption, this chapter argues that for the Company, containing corruption did not necessarily mean controlling it. Regulating corruption meant managing perceptions and public opinion. What is “corrupt” and what is “legitimate” are, thus, questions entangled in the history of imperial interests and interpretations. Similarly, prudence and propriety are also products of historical agendas. The chapter engages with the deeper connections between forms of political virtues and vices, as well as imperial state-formation.
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Glossary
- Amlah:
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Private Servant Usually in Public Offices
- Chaprasee:
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Peon
- Diwani Adalat:
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Civil Court
- Munshi:
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Clerk
- Nazar:
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Gifts, usually on some auspicious occasion such as marriage, birth of an heir etc.
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Anushree, A. (2021). The East India Company and the Regulation of Corruption in Early-Nineteenth-Century India. In: Kroeze, R., Dalmau, P., Monier, F. (eds) Corruption, Empire and Colonialism in the Modern Era. Palgrave Studies in Comparative Global History. Palgrave Macmillan, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-0255-9_4
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