Statement I : The Zamindars were an exploitative class in Mughal India. Statement I : The Zamindars often received the support of the peasantry in a large number of agrarian uprisings in North India in the seventeenth century.

Statement I is true as Zamindars were landed proprietors who enjoyed social and economic privileges, often living off the labor of others through milkiyat lands and acting as intermediaries who withheld a percentage of revenue [1]. While they could be exploitative, Statement II is also true; in the seventeenth century, zamindars often received support from the peasantry during agrarian uprisings against the Mughal state. This support was rooted in shared interests against state oppression and the zamindars' role as local leaders who provided means of cultivation and loans to peasants [3]. However, Statement II is not the correct explanation of Statement I because the peasant support was a result of mutual local interests and traditional ties against external state demands, rather than a justification or explanation for the zamindars' exploitative nature as a class.

Sources

1. [1] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART II, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 8: Peasants, Zamindars and the State > 5. The Zamindars > p. 211
2. [3] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART II, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 8: Peasants, Zamindars and the State > Ü Discuss... > p. 212