Eksaria Bhumihar Zamindars - Origin

By the end of the sixteenth (16th) century, the EKSARIA BHUMIHARS got a foothold in the erstwhile district of SARAN, Bihar. The pivotal person was JAGARNATH DIXIT, who settled in the village of EKSAR, by early sixteenth century. They managed to expand and hold out large territories but they could never form a unified lineage and thus lead to the formation of a "RAJ". Jagarnath Dixit's descendants were able to expand their territories as the state did not resist and there was abundance of male heirs.
The two youngest sons of Jagarnath moved to other parganas while the eldest two remained behind. The Eldest, SARAN RAI - on whose name SARAN District (present Chapra, Siwan and Gopalganj Districts) was named- had 4 sons - Each of whom formed villages and zamindaris. The second oldest son of Jagarnath had no issue.

SARAN RAI's descendants settled at different places and formed different zamindaris. The first son created the MAJHA line of zamindars, the second - NATH RAI - settled at PARSA and subsequently his descendants moved to CHAINPUR ZAMINDARI. The third son produced the lineage which resulted in the RUSI and KHAIRA ZAMINDARIS. The youngest became the pioneer for the BAGOURA Zamindari. Famously, they were known as the CHOU-BHAIYAS. (FOUR BROTHERS)

The Patriarchal Root (Late 16th Century)

• Jagarnath Dixit: The ancestral lineage begins with Jagarnath Dixit (a Brahmin scholar/chieftain recorded in some traditions as migrating from Hastinapur or Western UP). He settled in the village of Ekshar in the Saran region, giving rise to the Eksaria ("from Ekshar") clan name.
  
  
• The Second Generation: Jagarnath’s eldest son, Saran Rai, became the dominant regional leader. Regional lore holds that the modern Saran district was historically associated with his name.

The Branching of the "Chou-Bhaiyas" (Third Generation)

Saran Rai had four sons, who became famously known in local history as the Chou-Bhaiyas (Four Brothers). To prevent internal conflict and manage their growing influence, the brothers established distinct geographic strongholds within a short distance of one another:

First Son: Established the line that founded the Manjhadhipati (Manjha) estate.

Second Son (Nath Rai): Settled initially at Parsa, with his descendants later establishing the Chainpur estate.

Third Son: The progenitor of the Rusi line. His direct descendants eventuated into two   tightly linked brother-estates: Rusi and Khaira.

 Youngest Son: Became the pioneer of the Bagoura estate

The Rusi Settlement and Property Splitting

Unlike kingdoms that adhered to strict primogeniture (where the eldest son inherits all power), the third brother's lineage favored the Mitakshara system of coparcenary property. 

• As the family multiplied over the 17th and 18th centuries, the Rusi branch permanently divided its landholdings from the Khaira branch.
• While the senior line maintained administrative control in Rusi village, younger sons and offshoots frequently migrated outward to establish smaller tactical villages or revenue pockets

Maharani Indrajit Kuer (Early 19th Century)

• A Power Alliance with Tekari Raj: One of the most historically documented figures tied directly to the Rusi Zamindari ownership is Maharani Indrajit Kuer. She was a daughter of the Rusi Estate family who married Maharaja Hit Narain Singh, the ruler of the immensely wealthy Tekari Raj (Nine Annas) estate in Gaya.
• Astute Administrator: When Maharaja Hit Narain Singh turned toward a life of intense religious ascetism and essentially abandoned public life in the 1840s, Maharani Indrajit Kuer took full control of the sprawling Tekari Raj properties. She became famous for her sharp acumen in zamindari administration and later groomed her daughter-in-law, Maharani Rajrup Kuer, to manage the estate

The Adoption Crisis and the Merger into "Manjha-Rusi" (19th Century)

• The Childless Zamindar:
  By the mid-to-late 19th century, the direct male lineage of the Rusi Estate faced a succession crisis when the ruling zamindar died childless.
• Adoption from the Manjha Line: To secure the estate and avoid its forfeiture to the British Crown under colonial revenue laws, the family turned to strategic marriage and adoption alliances. A prominent family from the sister estate of Manjha—founded by the descendants of the first brother of the Chou-Bhaiyas—stepped in.
• Hariharendra's Second Son: The second son of Hariharendra (a highly connected Manjha aristocrat who had married into the elite Sheohar zamindari family) was formally adopted as the legal heir to the childless Rusi zamindar.
• The Consolidated "Manjha-Rusi" Estate: This clever adoption strategy consolidated the assets and leadership of both lineages. As a result, the owners weathered the economic shifts of early British rule, transforming the property into a combined entity known in late-colonial administrative records as the Manjha-Rusi Zamindari

Maharaja Ram Kishen Singh (Adopted into Tekari Raj)

• From Rusi to Tekari Sovereign: In another massive cross-estate alliance, Maharaja Ram Kishen Singh (originally of the Rusi Estate family) was adopted into the core line of the multi-district Tekari Raj. Maharaja Ram Kishen Singh was the adopted son of Maharani Indrajeet Kunwar of TIKARI. Thus a Rusi Zamindar's son became a MAHARAJA.
• He was officially recognized by the British Government as the Maharaja of Tekari on May 8, 1873. He became highly regarded as a philanthropist among Bihar's elite, spending vast sums of his wealth on regional famine relief ( 1874–1875) and heavily financing the establishment of Patna College and the Prince of Wales Patna Hospital.