Across Oceans of Law: The Komagata Maru and Jurisdiction in the Time of Empire

The British-built and Japanese-owned steamship Komagata Maru, carrying 376 Punjabi migrants, was denied entry into Canada and deported to Calcutta in 1914. Renisa Mawani's book, Across Oceans of Law, examines the historical and conceptual stakes of situating Indian migration within maritime worlds, arguing that the ship's landing raised questions regarding the jurisdictional tensions between common law and admiralty law and the legal status of the sea.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 17 August 2018
Publisher: Duke University Press

The British-built and Japanese-owned steamship Komagata Maru departed Hong Kong in 1914, bound for Vancouver, carrying 376 Punjabi migrants. Chartered by railway contractor and purported rubber planter Gurdit Singh, the ship and its passengers were denied entry into Canada and deported to Calcutta two months later.

In Across Oceans of Law, Renisa Mawani retells this well-known story of the Komagata Maru. Drawing on oceans as method—a mode of thinking and writing that repositions land and sea—Mawani examines the historical and conceptual stakes of situating histories of Indian migration within maritime worlds. Through close readings of the ship, the manifest, the trial, and the anticolonial writings of Singh and others, Mawani argues that the Komagata Maru's landing raised urgent questions regarding the jurisdictional tensions between common law and admiralty law, and, ultimately, the legal status of the sea. By following the movements of a single ship and bringing oceans into sharper view, Mawani traces British imperial power through racial, temporal, and legal contests and offers a novel method of writing colonial legal history.

The Komagata Maru's journey began in Hong Kong, where it was chartered by Gurdit Singh, a railway contractor and purported rubber planter. The ship's passengers, mostly Punjabi migrants, were eager to start new lives in Canada, but their hopes were dashed when they were denied entry by Canadian authorities.

Determined to reach their destination, the ship sailed onward, but it was intercepted by the British Royal Navy off the coast of Vancouver. The captain of the Komagata Maru was ordered to turn the ship around and return to Hong Kong, where the passengers were detained.

Two months later, the ship was again set sail, this time bound for Calcutta, India. The passengers, now in a state of despair, were subjected to harsh conditions aboard the ship, with limited food and water supplies. Many died before reaching their destination.

The incident sparked widespread outrage and led to increased scrutiny of immigration laws and policies in both Canada and India. It also highlighted the complex jurisdictional tensions between common law and admiralty law, which were at the heart of the dispute.

The legal status of the sea was also questioned in the aftermath of the Komagata Maru incident. The ship was registered in Japan, but it was carrying passengers from India, which was under British colonial rule. The incident raised questions about the sovereignty of the sea and the rights of ships to navigate it.

In conclusion, the Komagata Maru incident is a significant chapter in the history of Indian migration and the struggle for legal recognition. It highlights the complex jurisdictional tensions between common law and admiralty law and the legal status of the sea. Mawani's book offers a novel method of writing colonial legal history by bringing oceans into sharper view and tracing British imperial power through racial, temporal, and legal contests.

Weight: 508g
Dimension: 154 x 229 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780822370352