Champai Soren Says JMM Govt Conspiring To Wipe Out Tribals From Jharkhand

BJP leader Champai Soren on Sunday accused the Jharkhand government of conspiring to wipe out the very existence of Adivasis, and alleged that the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) rules framed by the incumbent regime were “completely anti-tribal”.

Soren, who recently met the family members of slain tribal leader Soma Munda in Khunti district, also held discussions with members of the Akhil Bharatiya Sarna Samaj on PESA and other tribal-related issues.

Criticising the JMM-led government over the PESA rules, the former chief minister alleged that provisions in the rules have created a “backdoor” for people other than traditional Gram Pradhans to take arbitrary decisions.

“On the very first page of the PESA rules, space has been left for ‘others’ to exercise powers, which undermines the traditional system,” he said.

Soren claimed that during his tenure, the rules had empowered Gram Sabhas to reclaim tribal land in cases of violation of the Chotanagpur and Santhal Pargana Tenancy Acts.

He said it was also mandatory for district collectors to seek Gram Sabha approval for land transfers in Scheduled Areas, but these provisions have been removed in the new rules.

Questioning the government’s intent, Soren alleged that around 850 acres of land were allotted to Hindalco in Noamundi area of West Singhbhum district without Gram Sabha’s approval in the same cabinet meeting in which the PESA rules were cleared.

“Tribal culture cannot survive without land. Like a fish without water, tribals will perish if they lose their land,” Soren said.

He said that if any factory comes up in a Scheduled Area, the landowner should be given a share in the property instead of a one-time settlement, and the land should be returned to the owner if the factory shuts down.

The former CM alleged that while the Union government enacted PESA to protect traditional self-rule and religious systems of tribals, the Mahagathbandhan government in Jharkhand has “crushed the spirit” of the law. He claimed the government was exploiting the “simple and naive nature” of tribals for the benefit of a few.

The BJP leader further alleged that the government had diluted the role of the governor by first curtailing powers in the Tribal Advisory Council and then vesting authority with district collectors under the PESA rules to keep the entire system under its control.

Warning of growing resentment among tribals, Soren said members of the community were moving from village to village across the state, appealing to people to unite against what he described as the government’s “anti-tribal approach”.

Earlier, addressing a programme in Dumka district on Friday, Soren had accused the incumbent regime of endangering the existence of the tribal community. He said tribals were already facing challenges such as alleged Bangladeshi infiltration and religious conversion, and their hopes from PESA had been dashed by the new rules.

Soren also reiterated that he would “tear apart and discard” the PESA rules in the presence of traditional Gram Pradhans. Appealing to youths to unite, he said the warriors of Santhal Pargana had sacrificed their lives to protect “jal, jungle and jameen” (water, forest and land), and it was now the responsibility of the present generation to launch a mass agitation in the interest of the community.