On the Future of Indigenous Traditions - Munin

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CHAPTER FOUR: The customary system in the present day scenario 4.1. The customary system: a legal and a political issue In the previous chapters we have looked at the sources of Adivasi community’s existence in past, their differences and conflicts with the non-Adivasis on the basic social life orientations, both within Hindu and also in the Muslim periods, including their struggles through their political associations in the colonial and post-colonial time in the country. Adivasis, at least in this part of India, were able to make their own legal space within the colonial administration, and could not have been ignored in the legal systems of independent India. In this chapter I am going to deal with some issues of their social and political lives today. Before we analyze the changes in the Adivasi social and political life it will be important to identify the point from where we should start the discussion. To start with, in Jharkhand, we find a change in perspective of the Adivasis in the Jharkhand movement itself since its inception. This is still in many ways responsible for directly or indirectly shaping the course of the political actions of the Adivasis in the recent past. As mentioned in the previous chapter, the Unnati Samaj (started in 1914) for “tribal autonomy” took a stand to “abandonment (of) traditional customs and practices and adoption of education and new values.” 124 However, today we find that the Jharkhand Pradesh Parha Raja, Manjhi Parganait Manki Munda, Doklo Sohor Maha Samiti, and the indigenous people’s organisations along with people’s interest groups with them, argue for the empowering of the their own customary system for the governance in the Jharkhand state. 125 This change in their perspective and positions taken by the Adivasi organisations opens up a wide range of issues to be brought 124 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), 234. 125 Nandini Sundar, “Custom' and 'Democracy' in Jharkhand”, Economic and Political Weekly (8 October, 2005), 4430. 80
forward for discussion on the issue of Adivasi political autonomy and their preferences for their system of governance. Here I am going to deal with some of the basic and important factors within Adivasi perspective and approaches while keeping in mind the external factors that have been discussed in earlier chapters. We have seen from the Adivasi community, that the “tribe” oriented communities are different from the “caste” oriented societies in a number of ways. This is not only in the case of Jharkhand but also in other states of India. These differences have not been addressed effectively enough when necessary, especially in the course of nation building and policy implementations. The process of ethnic identity formation of certain ethnic groups in the nation-state in reference to Brass’s third set of struggle, (referred to in chapter three), i.e. the struggle between the state and the groups that dominate it, as against the population that inhabits its territory, 126 applies well here. The question here would be: what are the strengths and weaknesses of the Adivasi groups in this case which can determine their position in the existing modern nationstate? Given their cultural and socio-economic background, how can Adivasis individuals, as “an ethnic identity…‘a subjectively self conscious community… that establishes criteria for inclusion and exclusion from the group… claim to status and recognition, either as a group at least equal to other groups’…” 127 determine their position? Let us take a few examples from different states in India with Adivasi or tribal population which are either covered under the Fifth or Sixth Schedule of Constitution, to see if the customary systems are being used for any particular or general reasons, before looking deeper into the Jharkhand case. 1. The Deccan Herald, (national daily) July 21, 2005, report from Agartala: In the state of Tripura (Agartala being its capital) in the north-east India, where the state Government has urged the Law Research Institute (LRI) of Gawahati High Court to accelerate a codification process of the customary laws prevailing in the tribal societies of the state. The reason given for this is that: 126 Paul R Brass ed., Ethnic Groups and the State (Australia: Croom Helm Ltd., 1985), 1. 127 Paul R Brass, Ethnicity and Nationalism: Theory and Comparison (New Delhi: Saga Publication, 1991), 14, cited by Amit Prakash Jharkhand Politics of Development and Identity (New Delhi: Orient Longman Limited), 6-7. 81
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Acknowledgements I dedicate this wo
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Table of Contents On the Future of
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CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION...........
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Map of India and Jharkhand Capital:
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Statement of the problem: The socia
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important aspect of these communiti
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Limitations and scope: The Adivasis
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CHAPTER ONE: Background of the them
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pointed out at the lack of definiti
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“which specify the tribes of trib
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ules that maintain a balance betwee
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1.2.4. - Political Jharkhand is a p
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are associated with. Roy further ad
Page 29 and 30: - but fought in vain - to steam the
Page 31 and 32: 2.2 The customary system / laws How
Page 33 and 34: generation to another. Customs coul
Page 35 and 36: khuntkatti dars - the decedents of
Page 37 and 38: The social organization for their a
Page 39 and 40: Among the Mundas these posts have b
Page 41 and 42: The sense of independence among the
Page 43 and 44: - That the practice of Adivasis cus
Page 45 and 46: sufficient occupation any more. Los
Page 47 and 48: Nevertheless, there were three reas
Page 49 and 50: the ‘modern temples of the nation
Page 51 and 52: the pilot projects of Peraj East Op
Page 53 and 54: Bank machines are lying unused. So
Page 55 and 56: 2.8 Which direction is the ‘devel
Page 57 and 58: CHAPTER THREE: Adivasi Politics 3.1
Page 59 and 60: “Originally, a tribe normally com
Page 61 and 62: system of the Adivasis that: “The
Page 63 and 64: policy of non-disturbing of the Adi
Page 65 and 66: specified, as the socio-cultural or
Page 67 and 68: 3.4. Rules & laws specific to Jhark
Page 69 and 70: in Jharkhand. They argue that reser
Page 71 and 72: 3.5. The “Tribe” /Adivasi ident
Page 73 and 74: In the political nation here, the r
Page 75 and 76: The policy of “‘tribals’ to d
Page 77 and 78: Jharkhand region and secondly, the
Page 79: The third point mentioned earlier i
Page 83 and 84: survived through different periods
Page 85 and 86: language called to be ‘the langua
Page 87 and 88: teen Manki court. That does not lim
Page 89 and 90: The positive side of it is that peo
Page 91 and 92: Munda (a post within the customary
Page 93 and 94: saying she was illegally building h
Page 95 and 96: the state mechanism and its process
Page 97 and 98: CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION 5.1. Basic
Page 99 and 100: do we look at it to find the distin
Page 101 and 102: “…most important argument for m
Page 103 and 104: 5.3.1. Adivasi customary system in
Page 105 and 106: traditional customary system prove
Page 107 and 108: Bibliography / References: Books Ar
Page 109 and 110: Articles, Published and Unpublished
Page 111 and 112: Appendixes: International Definitio
Page 113: Maps 2 and 3 Photos sources: Cover
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