હાજાપટેલની પોળમાં આવેલ બલાજના પાડામાંના એક જ ઘરના બે દસ્તावેજો
By Rasila Kadia
Summary
Rasilaben Kadia studies two legal documents discovered in a house in the Balaj area of Hajapatel’s Pol in Ahmedabad. Found in a Jain upashray’s collection, both documents relate to the same property. The first is a sale deed dated Samvat 1710 (AD 1653), where two sisters sell a house to a member of the Shrimali community, witnessed by relatives and community members. The deed meticulously records the price, boundaries and conditions, illustrating the precision of vernacular legal culture. The second document, damaged and partly illegible, appears to be a mortgage deed for the same house executed later; it names Bai Jivi, daughter of Jasraj Jiwa, as the mortgagor and lists witnesses. Kadia analyses script, language and legal formulas, highlighting the role of women in property transactions and the community’s reliance on written deeds to secure rights. She situates the documents in the socio-economic context of 17th-century Ahmedabad, marked by mercantile prosperity and community autonomy. The article underscores the value of preserving such records to understand urban life, legal practices and gender roles in pre-modern Gujarat.
Conclusion
Kadia concludes that the two deeds from Hajapatel’s Pol offer rare insights into 17th-century urban property transactions, revealing the active role of women, the precision of legal documentation and the importance of witnesses. These documents illuminate vernacular legal culture and the social fabric of pre-modern Gujarat. Preserving and studying such records will enrich our understanding of everyday life and legal practices.