ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes the relationship between colonial India, British imperial policies, British Indian Army, recruited communities and recruiting regions. It suggests that even mighty (and ‘modern’) British Indian empire had similarities with the Qing and the Ottoman: imperialism in South Asia was not always an imposition of ‘westernization’ from top, but rather the result of negotiation and compromise with existing social, political, economic, cultural and intellectual traditions. The colonial state’s security was so dependent on Punjabis that it was forced to initiate measures aimed at pre-empting any possible causes for disaffection by the recruited peasantry. The Punjab Alienation of Land Act, ‘political’ revenue assessment and specific legislative measures aimed at militarized groups need to be seen in light of state imperatives, too. In 1907 and in 1925, a highly recruited community forced the imperial governments of the day to compromise, and on its terms. Colonialism in Punjab was restrained by the very men who provided state with its armed forces.
