On the Future of Indigenous Traditions - Munin

Jharkhand region and secondly, the protection of the Adivasis from the dikus – the
outsiders. These objectives were clearly indicative of Jharkhand Sub-Nationality. 118
The emergence of the Jharkhand movement Nirmal Sengupta, implied that the dikus-
‘outsider –exploiter’ who came from the three neighbouring states Bangal, Orissa and
Madhya Pradesh is the main cause of the problems. 119 However, with the formation of
Jharkhand Mukti Morch later in 1973 political extremism also could be seen in the
Jharkhand movement. Within a year some “120 violent incidents including looting of
crops or forcible harvesting of crops standing of lands of illegal possession of moneylenders,
attacks on ‘exploiters’ arose and murder” took place. 120 Prakash also
indicates to yet another development in the same continuation that “the sub-national
identities in most parts of India draw upon a socio-economic factor. In addition to
their cultural basis of mobilization, the socio-economic factor has led them to adopt a
radical leftist idiom of politics in the some regions, particularly in the tribal regions of
West Bengal and Bihar [Jharkhand was still a part of Bihar when this reference was
used] and in some parts of Andhra Pradesh, known as ‘Naxalite’ politics that
advocated radical action such as execution of ‘exploiters’ after trial in a ‘people’s
court’, forcible harvest of fields alienated from the tribal peasants, and violent
overthrowing of the existing administration.” 121
It is also that amongst many the instances of assertion of sub-national identities in
India, that the case of the Jharkhand movement is “unique in character”. According to
Prakash, “the movement draws upon the tribal cultural heritage [where the
customary system of governance included other non-Adivasi communities who
respected their culture were accepted as a part of the Adivasi community] of the
Chotanagpur region” 122 which has evolved to include the socio-economic problems
118 Ibid., 238.
119 Nirmal Sengupta, “ Jharkhand Movement and Tribal Identity” in The Jharkhand Movement edited
by R. D Munda and S. Bosu Mallick (Copenhagen: IWGIA, 2003), 333.
120 K.L. Sharma, “The Question of Identity and Sub-Nationality: A Case of Jharkhand Movement in
Bihar”in Jharkhand Movement Indigenous peoples’ Struggle for Autonomy in India edited by R. D
Munda and Basu Mallick ( Copenhegen: IWGIA, 2003), 96.
121 Amit Prakash, Jharkhand Politics of Development and Identity, op. cit., 16.
122 R. D. Munda, In Search of a tribal homeland. In Ethnopolitics and Identity Crisis, ed. Buddhadeb
Choudhari (New Delhi: Inter India Publications, 1992), 377-86 cited by Amit Prakash, Jharkhand
Politics of Development and Identity ( New Delhi: Oriental Longman,2001),18.
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