Shivaji wanted to sweep away the middle class of revenue farmers and come into direct relations with the cultivators. "The ryots were not subject to the authority of the zamindars, deshmukhs, and desais, who had no right to exercise the powers of a political superior (overlord) or harass the ryots."
"In the Nizam-Shahi, Adil-Shahi and Mughal territories annexed, the ryots had formerly been subject to patils, kulkarnis and deshmukhs, who used to do the collection work and pay what they pleased to the State, sometimes only 200 or 300 hun for a village yielding 2,000 hun as revenue. These mirasdars (hereditary landlords), thus growing wealthy, built forts enlisted troops, and grew powerful. They never waited upon the revenue officer of Government and used to show fight if he urged that the village could pay more to the State. This class had become unruly and seized the country. But Shivaji dismantled their castles, garrisoned the strong places with his own troops, and took away all power from the mirasdars. Formerly they used to take whatever they liked from the ryots. This was now stopped. Their dues were fixed after calculating the (exact) revenue of the village, and they were forbidden to build castles." (Sabh. 32-33.)
Similarly, military fief-holders were given no political power over their tenants. "The sar-i- naubats, majmuadars, karkuns and the officers in the Rajah's personal service were given assignments on the revenue (tankha barat) for their salary. The
