IOR/L/PS/10/77

The volume contains correspondence relating to the distribution of the Oudh Bequest in Kerbala [Karbala] and Nejef [Najaf]. The correspondence is principally between the Government of India (Foreign and Political Departments), the India Office, and the Foreign Office. There are many enclosures that include correspondence from the following:

• the Political Resident in Turkish Arabia (who also acts as the British Consul-General in Baghdad);
• Mirza Muhammad Hassan Mohsin, British Vice-Consul at Kerbala;
• several mujtahids (a person accepted as an authority on Islamic law) from Kerbala and Nejaf;
• J W Hose, Chief Secretary to the Government of the United Provinces.

The Oudh Bequest was an annual payment made by the Government of India to the mujtahids of the holy shrine cities of Karbala and Najaf. This payment was the interest on a loan given to the East India Company in 1825 by the King of Awadh, who instructed that it be used to improve religious learning and help the poor of Shia communities in Iraq.

The papers within the volume cover the discussion over how the bequest was to be distributed. This system of distribution underwent several changes over the years, owing to complaints of unfairness by potential recipients and corruption as perceived by the British. Included within the volume are several petitions from mujtahids and representatives of the Indian residents of Kerbala and Nejef for a fairer distribution of the funds.

The volume includes extracts from the summaries of events in Turkish Arabia that were produced on a monthly basis by the Political Resident in Baghdad.