Abhayapuri - Bijni Kingdom

The Bijni Kingdom was situated between 250 53' and 260 32' N. and 900 85' and 910 85' E. The estate was in possession of the Bijni family, descended from the Koch king Nara Narayan, who reigned over Kamata kingdom from 1534 to 1584. Before his death, Nara Narayana allowed his kingdom to be divided between his son Lakshmi Narayan and his nephew Raghu Rai (son of Chilarai). Raghu Rai established his capital at Barnagar in the Barpeta (now a district in Assam), and received as his share the Koch territories lying to the east of Sankosh River.

After the death of Nara Narayan in 1584, Raghu Rai declared independence. The eastern kingdom ruled by Raghu Rai came to be called Koch Hajo and the western Koch Bihar.Soon after the declaration of independence, the two kingdoms started showing hostilities against each other. Raghu Rai was succeeded by his son Parikshit Narayan and was defeated in 1602 by the army of Nawab of Dhaka (governor for the Mughals) who was moved by Lakshmi Narayan (ruler of Koch Bihar). Parikshit was defeated at Dhubri (now a district in Assam) and sued for peace. But soon, he continued with the hostilities and in 1614 was driven up to Pandu, now in Guwahati. There, Parikshit surrendered and agreed to become a vassal of the Mughal Empire. But before he could take up this assignment he died. The Mughals then appointed Kabisekhar as the kanungo and instructed Sheikh Ibrahim Karori to set up a Mughal system of administration. Parikshit' son Bijit Narayan, was confirmed by the Mughals as 'jamindar' of the area between the river Manas and the Sankosh, and from him the Bijni family descended. The name "Bijni", now a sub-division of Chirang district of Bodoland Territorial Area in Assam, comes from the name of the king Bijit Narayan.

Under the Mughal rule, the Bijni king Bijit Narayan paid a tribute of Rs. 5,998 which was afterward commuted to an annual delivery of 68 elephants. During the last two decades of 17th century, the Mughals lost their influence on Assam while the East India Company gradually started strengthening their foothold in different parts of India including Bengal.

The East India Company was awarded the 'diwani' or overlordship of Bengal by the empire following the Battle of Buxar in 1764 and the company came to an agreement (known as Permanent Settlement) with Bengali landlords in 1793 to fix revenues to be raised from land. With the Treaty of Yandaboo in 1826, the East India Company finally took control of the both Esstern Assam and Western Assam. However, it was doubtful whether Goalpara was ever included in the Permanent Settlement. According to The Imperial Gazetteer of India (Volume 8), a small assessment from the Bijni kingdom was always accepted in lieu of land revenue, though it has sometimes been argued it was nothing more than a tribute. The Imperial Gazetteer of India, which was published in 1902, states that the Bijni family paid a revenue of Rs. 1,500 and cesses amounting to nearly Rs. 19,000 for an estate which covered an area of 950 square miles (2,500 km2) with an estimated rent-roll of Rs. 2 lakh.

On the conclusion of the Bhutan war (or Duar War) fought between British India and Bhutan in 1864–1865, the Bijni family put forward claims to hold a large tract of land in the Eastern Duir which they alleged that they were in possession under the Bhutan government. The claim was admitted and in 1870 a settlement was effected with the Court of Wards on behalf of the minor Bijni Raja. The present extent of the estate to which they were entitled was still matter of uncertainty, but in 1882 it was ruled by the government of India that the Raja should receive 130,000 acres (530 km2) of land. These estates generally remained under the direct management of the government, who allowed to the Raja 7.5 percent of the collections as his share of profits.