Justice and Punishment

Justice and Punishment The Mauryan administration is famous in history for its judicial system. The Mauryan legal system was based on idealism and not reformism. The king was the highest judicial officer. Gram Sabha was the lowest judicial unit. Above it were courts at sangrahan, dronamukha and janapada levels. The Arthashastra mentions two types of courts:
(i) Dharmasthiya: Analogous with modem civil courts, Dharmasthiya decided personal disputes such as those over stridhana (wife's wealth) and marriage.
(ij) Kantakasodhan Analogous with modem criminal courts, Kantakasodhan decided upon matters related to individuals and the state, e.g. wages of workers, murder, etc.
The Mauryan legal system flowed from four sources:
(i) dharma (following accepted principles); (ii) vyavahara (contemporary legal codes); (ill) charitra (customs); and (iv) rajasasana (the royal decree).
Severe penalties were imposed on the law-breakers. For ordinary crimes, monetary fines were imposed. Hence, punishment was largely in the form of fines. A punishment of mutilation could sometimes be changed to that of payment of a fine. Capital punishment was known and practised. However, after Asoka converted to Buddhism, he made a concession iD. capital punishment. Now, those condemned to die were granted a three-day respite. During this period it was possible to make a final appeal to the judges.

According to Arthashastra, penalties in the Mauryan period were based on varna hierarchies. It means that for the same kind of offence a Brahman was punished much
less severely than a Shudra.