바카라The manner in which Baba Bhimrao Ambedkar, who had dreamt that all sections of the society (religion, caste sect) are able to come together on one platform, I feel that the way he had to embrace Buddhism (by giving up his religion), something similar is being planned for the Adivasis and the Dalit in the future.바카라
These words of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren from the floor of the house just minutes before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) took him away not only point to a new form of Adivasi aspirations but also calls for a Dalit-Adivasi mobilisation that Soren바카라s party Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has historically been known for. While addressing the house after the trust vote where the JMM-Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) alliance successfully proved its majority, Soren repeatedly reiterated his Adivasi identity and said that an Adivasi riding BMW irked the ruling class leading to his "arrest".
Such strong evocation of Adivasi identity on the floor of the house has lately been missing from Indian politics. On December 19, 1946, legendary Adivasi leader Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda said in the parliament, 바카라Sir, I am proud to be a Jungli, that is the name by which we are known in my part of the country.바카라 But these words could not find much resonance in the following generations 바카라 except during JMM바카라s struggle for an independent Jharkhand.
However, the void in the Adivasi voices in the parliament has a long history. It was none other than Dr BR Ambedkar who in 1945 wanted to deny representation to Adivasis in the Central Assembly and said, 바카라The Aboriginal Tribes have not as yet developed any political sense to make the best use of their political opportunities and they may easily become mere instruments in the hands either of a majority or a minority and thereby disturb the balance without doing any good to themselves.바카라
The Adivasi groups were, nevertheless, in no way ready to accept such disenfranchisement. The Naga National Council on February 19, 1947, said, 바카라Democracy in its purest form exists among the Nagas.바카라
The Adivasi Student Fellowship, which made an appeal for a separate Jharkhand, wrote to the Central Assembly: 바카라India is marching towards democracy. We will be the future free citizens of India. India will be teaching democracy to her children. We are the most democratic people on Earth. We have maintained the principles and ideals of democracy from the very beginning. What we require at present is protection from disrupting us into tribes and sub-tribes by the present Government.바카라
Significantly, Soren바카라s speech in the assembly was interspersed with such evocations. Calling for Dalit-Adivasi unity, he fumed, 바카라Where does so much malice come from in their minds? This is beyond my understanding. The systems nurtured by them are not shy in saying they were in the jungle, so they should remain in the jungle. We came out of the forest and sat next to them. Jharkhand is a tribal and Dalit-dominated backward state. We left no stone unturned to take it forward.바카라
The efforts of Soren to bring Adivasi identity to the centre of politics, notably, comes at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been evoking BJP바카라s policies for Adivasis and trying to strengthen BJP바카라s outreach among the community ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Recently, while delivering his speech in Rajya Sabha, PM Modi said, 바카라We have always prioritised them... first Dalits and now Adivasis. Who are the beneficiaries of our schemes? All our works are for the SC, ST, and OBC communities.바카라 He also did not forget to mention that it was his government that for the first time made an Adivasi woman the President of the country.
Reminding the opposition parties of the latest presidential contest when they deputed Yashwant Sinha against Murmu, the PM continued, 바카라Your (opposition to Ms Murmu) wasn바카라t for ideology. You made someone who went from BJP (former Union Minister Yashwant Sinha) the candidate. You were opposed to an Adivasi woman.바카라
However, the absence of President Murmu during both the inauguration of Ram Mandir and the new parliament building indicates the seriousness of the ruling party regarding Adivasi representation, says the opposition.
Last year, the PM took a significant step to address Adivasis 바카라both culturally and politically바카라 when he decided to celebrate the birth anniversary of Adivasi icon Birsa Munda from his village. In that programme only, he launched Rs 24,000 crore project for particularly vulnerable tribal groups (PVTGs).
Symbolic evocation of Adivasis also found echoes in the speeches of his ministers before the inauguration of Ram Mandir. Rajnath Singh, the Defence Minister of India, just prior to the consecration ceremony, said, 바카라Ram is the figure of unity. He is the purshottam who went to the house of Shabari mata and proved that he didn바카라t believe in social hierarchy.바카라 The reference of Shabari mata 바카라an assumingly Adivasi character바카라 also found space in Modi바카라s speech after the consecration ceremony.
Such continuous efforts of the Sangh to accommodate Adivasis 바카라whom they call Vanavasis바카라 within the broader Hindu fold were challenged by Soren when he passed the resolution in favour of the Sarna religion and called for Adivasi unity. Last year, while talking to Outlook, senior BJP leader and MLA Ramchandra Chandravanshi said, 바카라What is Sarna? All of us are Hindus. Adivasis worship nature but that doesn바카라t buy them the recognition of a separate religion.바카라
So, it is seemingly a fight over the identity of Adivasis in future, think activists. Though the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data clearly shows that the attacks on Adivasis have continuously increased since 2013 and Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh 바카라both the BJP-ruled states바카라 are leading in numbers; the Adivasis had preferred BJP over the Congress in the latest set of assembly elections. Notably, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Rajasthan 바카라all tribal-dominated states바카라 went to BJP and the ST seats that in 2018 favoured Congress giving them an edge, switched sides.
Explaining this political shift, one of the senior journalists who has been working in Madhya Pradesh for decades, says, 바카라The RSS has been working in the Adivasi regions through different organisations for almost 25 years. Even after that, in 2018, they gave Congress a chance but the party couldn바카라t manage to offer what they expected.바카라
However, another journalist referred to the excitement over Ram Mandir that worked as a pull-factor for Adivasis. On January 21, a day before the consecration ceremony, a few Adivasi right-wing activists rode to a church in Jhabua and planted the saffron flag atop the Holy Cross. That this incident happened in Jhabua 바카라the district with the highest Adivasi concentration in MP바카라 makes it more evident that there has been a saffron surge in Adivasi regions.
The competitive identity politics that has grown in the last few years among three groups 바카라Adivasi Hindus, Adivasi Christians, and Sarna Adivasis바카라 will shape the future politics of tribals in India, says an Adivasi commentator. In this context, Soren바카라s arrest becomes another point of contention 바카라 perhaps opening a new path to shape the future.
