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constituted on the principle of parallelism. As early as 1356 a requirement had been imposed compelling everyone to be registered under a leader, who was called a 'nai'(* usually translated as noble) or 'munnai'. This registration facilitated the recruitment of men for war. The necessity of having at least two Chief Ministers was to create a balance of power. It was in order to prevent the high ranking officials from joining forces against the throne. Actually there were laws forbidding high officials to have private contact with each other. Further to ensure their loyalty, they were required yearly to drink the imprecated water, taking oath of allegiance to the king.
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