Q. Which of the following statements correctly describes the nature of the administration of the Vijayanagar Empire?
1.The Nayankara System made the military chiefs (Nayakas) the supreme authority over the judiciary within their assigned territory, overriding the traditional Mahanayakacharya.
2.The state did not levy any tax on marriages, but a special tax known as Jiziya was imposed on the urban non-agricultural population for public works maintenance.
3.The term Rayasam was used to denote the royal secretary or the writer who assisted the King in drafting royal orders and maintaining records.
Select the correct code:
Answer: B
Notes:
Explanation:
- Statement 1: Incorrect. The Nayakas were military-administrative chiefs with extensive power, but they were still accountable to the Mahanayakacharya (chief of all Nayakas/provincial governors) and the King. Furthermore, the Mahanayakacharya was the central administrative officer responsible for provincial supervision, not a traditional judicial authority that could be “overridden” in the judiciary by a Nayaka.
- Statement 2: Incorrect. Vijayanagar rulers, being Hindu kings, did not levy the Jiziya tax (a poll tax on non-Muslims in a Muslim-ruled state). While they did levy marriage taxes (sometimes abolished for lower castes), the Jiziya was not part of their system.
- Statement 3: Correct. Rayasam was the term for the royal secretary or record keeper who was crucial in the communication and administrative machinery of the central government, responsible for drafting and dispatching royal Farmans (Shasanas).
