Bast-Sitting of the People of Kermanshah in the National Consultative Assembly during the Constitutional Era

Abstract

The people of Kermanshah, who were subjected to intense pressures and damages throughout the Constitutional Movement, resorted to bast-sitting (seeking sanctuary) twice in order to achieve their demands. The first bast-sitting by the people of Kermanshah in the British Consulate resulted in the bazaar being plundered by the tribes. Consequently, those who had incurred losses traveled to Tehran to continue bast-sitting in the National Consultative Assembly. This study was conducted to answer the question: What were the causes, contexts, and outcomes of the bast-sitting of the people of Kermanshah in the National Consultative Assembly? This research has been carried out using library sources and follows a descriptive-analytical method. According to the findings of this research, the appointment of the despotic Seyf al-Dowleh as the governor of Kermanshah was the primary factor in this event. From the time of his arrival in that city, Seyf al-Dowleh acted in opposition to the constitutionalists; through negligence and obstruction in holding elections for the Assembly, he provoked public anger and prompted the people's sit-in at the British Consulate. Meanwhile, the tribes allied with Seyf al-Dowleh ransacked the city’s bazaar. In this incident, merchants and bazaar shopkeepers—who had joined the Constitutional Movement from its inception to improve their situation, which had deteriorated due to colonial concessions and treaties—were once again harmed. Since no one addressed the situation in Kermanshah after the sit-in ended, they proceeded to Tehran to seek redress from the Assembly, demanding the prosecution of those responsible for the bazaar’s plunder and compensation for their losses. Ultimately, with considerable perseverance and the support of Kermanshah’s representatives in the Assembly, they succeeded in obtaining compensation for part of their confiscated assets from Seyf al-Dowleh.