Arjun Munda

Tribal Affairs Minister ‘Mistaken’ in Calling Manipur Strife a ‘Law and Order’ Issue: Tribal Body

The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum said that after the deaths of 200 people and the displacement of tens of thousands of others, “it should be clear to everyone that the conflict is not a simple law and order issue”.

New Delhi: After Union tribal affairs minister Jual Oram referred to the Manipur ethnic strife as a “law and order situation”, a tribal organisation from the state said on Thursday (June 20) he was “misinformed” and that the conflict has comprised an “ethnic cleansing”.

“The conflict was a law-and-order issue for the first 24 hours, during which an impartial government could have stamped out the violence,” said the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum (ITLF), an umbrella pro-Kuki-Zo group based in Manipur’s Churachandpur district.

“But it is well documented that state police forces from the majority Meitei community made no effort to stop the attacks on minority Kuki-Zo tribals but actively participated in the violence,” the ITLF continued to say.

Oram, who was given the tribal affairs portfolio earlier this month, had said during an interview published on Thursday that the conflict was a law and order situation the Union home ministry was helping tackle.

“This problem is actually one of the home ministry. Law and order situation is a state subject. In this, you are asking about this only because one of the parties involved is a tribal community … Who will not want a solution?” Oram said while speaking to The Hindu.

He added: “But this is being handled by the home ministry, in coordination with the state government and the governor there.”

But the ITLF called the violence the “worst and most prolonged ethnic conflict after India’s partition” and blamed it on Manipur chief minister N. Biren Singh and his “patronage of militant Meitei organisations”.

“After more than a year of hostilities, the deaths of more than 200 people and the displacement of more than 60,000, it should be clear to everyone that the conflict is not a simple law and order issue,” it also said.

The ITLF alleged the state and Union governments had stood by while sections of the Meitei community, including militant bodies, had raped, tortured and killed tribals, saying “if this is not ethnic cleansing, then what is?”

Manipur has been beleaguered by an armed ethnic conflict between the Meiteis and the tribal Kukis since May last year.

The two communities became almost completely segregated – with the Meiteis living in the Imphal valley and the Kukis living in the state’s hilly districts – and separated by ‘buffer zones’ patrolled by security forces.

Violence continues to occur in the state. Recently, the Jiribam district, which was reportedly one of the state’s calmer districts during the period of strife, saw a spate of ethnic violence.

According to The Hindu, Oram’s remarks on the conflict were the first to made by a Union tribal minister, as his predecessor Arjun Munda had “maintained a silence, refusing to answer questions on the issue”.

FRA Can Now Be Implemented in J&K – so Why Hasn’t It Been Implemented?

Tribal leaders and activists say that despite the FRA now being applicable in Jammu and Kashmir, they are yet to receive any relief from “persecution and a sense of insecurity.”

Before the semi-autonomous status of the north Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir was abolished by the Union government on August 5, 2019, the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (also known as the Forest Rights Act) was not implemented in the state. The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Jammu unit had cited the erstwhile semi-autonomous status of J&K as the main reason for non-implementation.

On August 5, 2019, the Union government passed the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation Act in the parliament. As per this Act, 153 Acts of the former state of Jammu & Kashmir have been repealed, 166 Acts have been retained from the former state and 106 new laws have been applied to Jammu & Kashmir. Among the new laws applied is the FRA.

This, the tribal activists and researchers argue, meant that the law should have been implemented on ground giving relief to the tribal population. But there are “no signs” of FRA being implemented, they have said. Under the Forest Rights Act, traditional forest dwellers are protected against forced displacements and have other rights as well, which include grazing rights, access to water resources and access to forest products (except timber).

Article 370 of the Indian constitution guaranteed special status to the mountainous erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir within the Indian Union, whereby it was empowered to constitute its own laws and had the discretion of implementing or not implementing central laws in the state. This is why FRA 2006, hailed as a historic and revolutionary law elsewhere in the country by tribal population and observers, was not being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir.

Also read: Forest Land Identified for Development After Reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir

Before the dissolution of the state assembly of former J&K state assembly, Qamar Hussain, a legislator of Peoples Democratic Party, had moved a bill in the former Jammu & Kashmir Assembly seeking implementation of the Forest Right Act in the state. But, the BJP opposed the bill. One of its former members and then Forest and Environment Minister, Lal Singh, told the assembly that Forest Rights Act cannot be implemented in J&K without the consent of the state legislature given J&K’s special status under the Indian constitution.

In the past four years, many eviction drives were carried out in some areas of Jammu city which prompted tribal leaders and news outlets to raise questions as to why the Forest Rights Act, which could have provided them protection against evictions, was not being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir.

Quoting Singh, media outlets reported in June 2015 that 1233 forest closures had been developed in Jammu & Kashmir state in the last three years and quoted him further as saying that 1,48,339.4 kanals (7,369 hectares) of forest land in Jammu division were retrieved from encroachers.

No relief

Tribal leaders and activists say that despite the FRA now being applicable in Jammu and Kashmir, they are yet to receive any relief from “persecution and a sense of insecurity.” According to tribal activist, Talib Hussain, “It is unfortunate that a perception was created in Jammu region that if Gujjar and Bakerwals (mostly Muslim) are allowed to avail forest rights, it will result in a demographic change in the non-Muslim majority districts of Jammu, Sambha, Kathua and Udhampur.” That narrative, he said, is compelling the people in these areas to oppose the implementation of the Forest Rights Act.

Also read: J&K: 97 Forest-Land Projects Cleared in 2018, 125 Cleared Since August 2019

“They have built a narrative that tribal people are land grabbers, forest encroachers and cattle smugglers. This is helping them [those who oppose the FRA in J&K] because this has influenced the public perception,” Hussain told Mongabay-India while citing some reports.

On the contrary, Hussain said, the Gujjars and Bakerwals are instrumental in protecting forests against timber smugglers and land grabbers. The FRA, according to him, recognises these services of the tribal people and respects their right to have access to forest land and forest produce except timber.

He said that after their migration from Kashmir in November and December 2019, “many nomad families were not allowed to build qulas (temporary structures). “These people are not aware that the FRA now stands applied in J&K so that they could have claimed their rights in court citing the FRA,” Hussain said and added that they don’t even have any awareness about how to do it.

Anwar Choudhary, President of Gujjar United Front, said that “when it comes to acting on laws which are against us, they are implemented right-away, but not the laws which are essential for the survival of tribal population.” He quoted the examples of tribal population being driven away from areas near forests and making grazing lands in forests out of bounds for Gujjars and Bakerwals of Jammu & Kashmir.

In Vijaypur village of Samba district, he said over 200 Gujjar families have been driven away without any compensation or resettlement.

Also read: NDA’s Draft Forest Law Is More Draconian Than What the British Left Us With

“We have been facing discrimination and the Forest Rights Act had provided us hope. But, it is so unfortunate that it is not being implemented despite the removal of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status which was being used as an excuse for not implementing it,” Choudhary told Mongabay-India. “Now, they have no excuse. But they are still managing to avoid its implementation. Who will listen to us?” he said and added that “a sense of insecurity and disappointment” is prevailing among Gujjars and Bakerwals.

Researcher of tribal issues, Javid Rahi, who is also the General Secretary of Tribal Research and Cultural Foundation (TRCF), said that he had hoped for rapid implementation of the FRA in Jammu & Kashmir after the removal of Article 370. “Till now we have not observed any signs of the FRA being implemented in Jammu & Kashmir. We demand its prompt implementation on ground by taking the necessary measures. This is a remarkable law and the tribal population should be no more deprived of its benefits,” Rahi, who has extensively researched on tribal population of Jammu & Kashmir, told Mongabay-India.

Once implemented, Rahi said, the law will empower the village committees to govern community forest resources and will democratise forest governance by securing rights of tribes of Jammu and Kashmir.

When contacted for his reaction, the principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) Jammu & Kashmir, Mohit Gera, said that the role of forest department will only come into play when the law is implemented by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs in Jammu and Kashmir. “We will have a role in making it operational,” he said. As part of the implementation of the law, committees will be formed with representations from various departments and parts of administration as also from tribal population. But so far, no such process has started.

The tribal population of Jammu and Kashmir

According to the 2011 Census, Scheduled Tribes form 11.9% of Jammu and Kashmir’s population. However, Gujjars and Bakerwal activists claim that they constitute up to 20% of 12 million population of the erstwhile state.

“The census has under-reported the population of Gujjar and Bakerwals who constitute no less than 15 to 20 percent of total population of J&K. For example, the census was carried out when they had migrated to other places in various areas as part of their annual migration,” Rahi, told Mongabay-India.

Bakerwals, among the tribal population of Jammu & Kashmir, mostly depend on forest land for their livelihoods and shelter — most of them don’t own any land or shelters. Bakerwals primarily rear goats and sheep while Gujjars rear cattle. Gujjars and Bakerwals are spread across almost every district of J&K, though a majority of them are concentrated in Poonch, Rajori and Reasi districts.

Also read: In Protecting the Kashmir Valley, Wular Lake Has Become Harder to Save

Bakerwals have also been the worst sufferers of the armed conflict in Kashmir. They have not only suffered persecution in forests by armed personnel in forests, but have also witnessed closing down of pastures for security reasons. After the closing down of traditional routes leading to over a dozen alpine pastures by the army after the inception of armed conflict in Kashmir, nomads have not been able to graze their herds in those pastures.

Rahi said that the hardships faced by nomads of Jammu and Kashmir have forced many of them to give up nomadic life-style. Quoting from his unpublished survey (in 2012) of tribal pastoralists, Rahi said that 39% respondents had given up on migratory traditions following the restrictions in the wake of conflict in the region.

The article was originally published on Mongabay. You can read it here.

Government Withdraws Controversial Amendments to Forest Rights Act

The decision comes just a few weeks before the Jharkhand assembly elections. The state has a sizeable scheduled tribe population.

New Delhi: The Union government on Friday withdrew certain controversial amendments to the Indian Forests Act 1927. The minister for environment, forests and climate change, Prakash Javadekar, said that the ‘zero draft’ – as the proposed bill was called – had created the ‘wrong impression’ that the government intended to do away with certain provisions of the Act which protect the rights of forest dwellers and tribal communities.

“It was a ‘zero draft’. It was mistakenly taken as a ‘government draft’ and circulated. Eleven states have drafted their own forest laws. This was just prepared by ministry officials to study how various forest laws can be put together in one draft and circulated. But now we have decided to withdraw the complete draft,” Javadekar said.

Also read: The Compensatory Afforestation Bill Should Not Be Passed in Its Current Flawed Form

The minister was accompanied by the minister for tribal affairs Arjun Munda while making the announcement. Both insisted that the government is committed to the protection of tribal rights.

The decision comes just a few weeks before the Jharkhand assembly elections. The state has a sizeable scheduled tribe population.

The proposed bill had been criticised for further empowering forest officials, who continue to enjoy significant discretion and powers under the existing act. It envisaged granting the forest bureaucracy powers to raid, arrest, search and seize property and even shoot to kill with a degree of immunity that is usually provided to other government officers.

“No forest-officer shall be arrested for any offence alleged to have been committed or purported to have been committed in discharge of his official duties, without causing out an inquiry by an authority to be notified by the State Government for the purpose,” a portion of the bill read.

It also sought to ‘dissuade’ political mobilisation. “To dissuade political executives to incite masses against the provisions of the Act. Many State Governments have withdrawn cases registered under the Indian Forest Act 1927 to draw political mileages. Such action has to curbed with heavy hand, because the results are disastrous. Porosity is the root cause of destruction of prime forest areas.”

Also read: NDA’s Draft Forest Law Is More Draconian Than What the British Left Us With

Tribal rights groups have welcome the government’s intent but have said that it needs to issue a formal written notification to the effect. They have also termed Javadekar’s comments on the bill as ‘misleading’.

“We note that the minister’s statement is deeply misleading in several respects. The minister claimed that the proposed amendments were merely a ‘draft’ that resulted from a ‘study’, but in fact the letter sent to state governments on March 7 clearly stated that this was a proposal for legislation and the minister himself stated the same in this reply to a starred question in parliament on June 28. In the same reply he also misled parliament by stating that the draft would be ‘in addition; to the rights recognised by the Forest Rights Act, though in fact it would have negated those rights,” the Campaign for Survival and Dignity said in a statement.

Jharkhand: Assembly Elections Around the Corner, Parties Analyse Strategies

Despite a tangible anti-BJP mood in the state, the opposition alliance managed to win only two of the state’s 14 seats, prompting it to introspect.

Ranchi: The general elections are over and Narendra Modi is back with a thumping majority. But in Jharkhand, the election season is far from over. Assembly elections are barely six months away, and await.

While the victorious BJP is enthused, the JMM-Congress-Jharkhand Vikas Morcha united opposition (mahagatbandhan) seems to be slowly lurching out of the shock to analyse the situation. It is still unable to come to terms with the drubbing, which came despite large-scale displeasure against the BJP state government.

Voters, particularly from tribal communities, were very unhappy with the state government’s policies, particularly the attempts to amend the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act, Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act, the Local Residence (Domicile) Policy among other things. The pathalgadi movement in the Khunti Lok Sabha constituency – the hub of Munda voters – was thought to be a natural reaction to these policies. Voters were also unhappy with the way the government came down heavily upon the people of the region to suppress the movement instead of addressing their discontent with dialogue. In Lohardaga constituency too, tribal voters were unhappy with the BJP, and so was the situation in Santhal Pargana. However, in all these regions, the BJP did a clean sweep, leaving the Congress-JMM and JVM wonder what went wrong and where. Even the BJP, which was doubtful of victory in these areas, is wondering how it won.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das. Credit: PTI

Local issues did not play a role

Arun Oraon, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary, in-charge of Chattishgarh, agrees there was an anti-BJP wave across Jharkhand, especially among tribal voters. The former IPS officer said, however, local issues did not play a role in the general elections, as the Congress had hoped. “Different constituencies have different reasons of our defeat,” said Oraon, who ensured a massive victory for his party in the Chattishgarh assembly elections in December 2018. He is the son of highly respected tribal leader, Bandi Oraon, also a former IPS who worked across India along with IAS officer B.D. Sharma on several tribal issues like Provision of the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, Forest Rights Act among others.

Also Read: The State’s Violent Response to Tribal Discontent Is Fuelling the Pathalgadi Movement

“Simple arithmetic – the idea that when two or more parties join hands, their voters too will come together – also did not happen. We failed to work at the booth level, on the other hand, the RSS workers canvasses across the state, down to the the booth level,” said Oraon.

All the Opposition bigwigs – JMM patriarch Shibu Soren, JVM chief Babulal Marandi, former Union minister Subodh Kant Sahay lost the election. The BJP ran away with 12 seats, leaving only two for the opposition – one each for the Congress and the JMM. While the Congress’s Geeta Koda defeated state BJP chief Laxman Gilua from Singbhum, the JMM’s Vijay Hansdah managed to keep his seat from Rajmahal.

Singbhum too is a tribal hub, with decisive ‘Ho Munda’ voters who were unhappy with Gilua due to his stand on the CNT/SPT Act amendments. But unlike other tribal seats like Khunti, Lohardaga, Dumka, tribal votes in Singbhum were not divided. In the other three seats, tribal voters were divided on religious line: Christian and Sarna.

The Sarna religion is often pandered to during elections. The government has promised a ‘Sarna Code’ in the 2021 Census for the tribes who follow the ancient religion, which worships nature. Christian tribes, an educated group within the tribal community, have often been labeled as cornering the benefits of reservation in jobs and education. The BJP managed to divide the tribes along the Sarna and Christian lines through various acts and utterances, which the opposition failed to counter.

Khunti was won by former chief minister Arjun Munda, now a cabinet minister. He often stood by the tribals against the state government’s attempts to amend land laws, though the win was by a very thin margin.

Mahadev Munda, a Khunti Lok Sabha voter, said residents of Kharswan and Tamar assembly constituencies voted massively in favour of Arjun Munda because they regretted that they had cost him the last assembly election. “Development and welfare works were not happening in Kharswan after Arjun Munda lost there,” he said.

Arjun Munda defeated the Congress’s Kalicharan Munda, the brother of Nilkath Singh Munda, a minister in the state BJP government. “The mahagatbandhan leaders did not manage to reach the booth level. While the BJP workers were everywhere, the coalition did not work properly and its men were not seen in most places. The Congress thought voters will naturally vote for it as there is wide-spread discontent among all sections against the BJP,” Mahadev, who is the coordinator of the Munda tribes’ social organisations in Chotanagpur, pointed out.

Arjun Munda. Photo: PTI

JMM loses strongholds

Dumka on the other hand has been a traditional JMM fort, represented by statehood pioneer Shibu Soren, who was fighting the ‘last election’ of his political life. Dumka Lok Sabha seat has three assembly constituencies reserved for tribal candidates – Sikaripara, Dumka and Jama – and the other three – Nala, Jamtara and Sarath – are general. “Nala and Jamtara voted in favour of the BJP. Even the traditional JMM cadre vote there shifted to the BJP, because of their caste and religious alignment,” said Ramesh Hembrom, a political analyst and social activist based in Dumka.

Jamshedpur, a general Lok Sabha seat, has also been a traditional JMM constituency. The steel city was the hub of JMM’s politics for many decades. Newly sworn-in Union tribal affairs minister Arjun Munda, too had once represented it, followed by Vidhyut Baran Mahato, who managed to retain his seat in this election too. However, both Munda and Mahato had their origin in the JMM, which has a strong presence among the Kurmi-Mahato voters there. The JMM fielded Champai Soren, also a JMM veteran, against Mahato.

“Mahato votes concentrated on religious line completely. This is the reason for the JMM’s Jagarnath Mahato losing from Giridih and Vidyut Baran Mahato of the BJP winning from Jamshedpur,” said Raju Mahato, a social leader who works across Jharkhand on socio-political issues. Shailendra Mahato, a statehood movement leader who was initially with the JMM and later joined the BJP but quit, countered this view. “It is true that they voted for the BJP, but they are still JMM sympathisers at heart. The voting pattern was because the JMM did not field a Mahato candidate from Jamshedpur,” Shailendra Mahato, himself a voter in the Jamshedpur constituency, said. He added that the assembly election will see a different voting pattern.

Most post-poll analysts have suggested that the Lok Sabha result will have ample influence on the assembly elections. The mahagatbandhan’s leaders are trying to put on a brave face, promising to bridge loopholes in the coalition and in electoral management.

Also Read: In This Jharkhand Village, No One Can Come or Go Without the Army’s Permission

V.P. Sharan, a former professor at the political science department of St Xavier’s College in Ranchi, says many factors, including the 10% reservation for economically poor upper castes, played in favour of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Besides, the Congress could not take its NYAY announcement to the voters,” he said. Sharan notes that the Lok Sabha election outcome in Jharkhand will bear some impact on the assembly elections.

What’s the way forward?

In Jharkhand too, the Congress has been thrown into internal problem, and party leaders are yet to discuss the situation. The BJP, on the other hand, is in high spirits. Chief minister Raghubar Das, who had focused on Santhal Pargana in his Lok Sabha campaign, the fort of state’s tribal politics with a slogan of ‘JMM-mukt Jharkhand’, has continued touring with the assembly polls in mind. A few days ago, during a visit to Santhal Pargana, he claimed the BJP will do another ‘clean sweep’ in Santhal Pargana in the assembly election too.

JMM working president Hemant Soren, meanwhile, held a meeting to introspect with his party leaders. Following the meeting, he admitted there was some gap in coordination between the mahagatbandhan partners. He said the mahagatbandhan will continue to face the BJP in the assembly elections with a different strategy. “Whatever is the strategy, the leaders will have to assure the people that they have a better alternative,” Arun Oraon, the AICC secretary in-charge of Chattisgrah, who hails from Jharkhand, observed.

Santosh K. Kiro is an independent journalist based in Ranchi.

Modi Set to Name Amit Shah as New Finance Minister: Reports

Shah is tipped to replace Arun Jaitley, who wrote to Modi on Wednesday asking not to be considered for a ministerial position because of health problems.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to name Amit Shah, president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as the new finance minister after taking his oath of office for the second time on Thursday, according to several media reports.

As Modi’s right-hand man and long-time strategist, Shah would be in a powerful position to direct financial policy in Asia’s third-largest economy in his first role as a federal lawmaker.

Shah masterminded the BJP‘s landslide victory in the April-May general election, but there are questions about his lack of Central government experience and financial background, especially at a time of growing signs of weakness in the economy.

Modi is expected to announce his ministers’ departments on Friday, after all of them were sworn in on Thursday evening at an open-air ceremony with some 8,000 guests including Bollywood stars and leaders of neighbours Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

The 54-year-old Shah, among 57 new and old ministers who will join Modi in the next government, pledged to give his best to create a strong and prosperous India.

“This team is a blend of youthful energy and administrative experience,” Modi said on Twitter. “It has people who have excelled as parliamentarians and those who have had distinguished professional careers. Together, we will work for India’s progress.”

The BJP swept to victory in the general election, held over 39 days, and increased its majority in the lower house of parliament.

Shah is tipped to replace Arun Jaitley, who wrote to Modi on Wednesday asking not to be considered for a ministerial position because of health problems.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi gestures towards supporters after his oath during a swearing-in ceremony at the presidential palace in New Delhi, India May 30, 2019. Credit: Reuters/Adnan Abidi

Shah would be taking over the finance portfolio at a sensitive time. He will probably need to move quickly to stimulate an economy beset by weak farm incomes, slow jobs growth and falling sales of key consumer goods including cars and motorbikes.

This week, two major industrial bodies called on the new government to take steps to bolster a growth rate that slowed to 6.6% in the three months to December – the lowest in five quarters – and is expected to have dropped further to 6.3% between January and March.

‘Gets things done’

Several investors and traders said they did not expect Indian markets to react much if Shah’s appointment was confirmed, believing his ability to get things done would offset his lack of financial experience.

“The hallmark of this government is that there’s more PMO (prime minister’s office)-driven strategy and guidance,” said Jayesh Shroff, co-founder of investment advisory firm Cask Capital. “So, to that extent, you don’t need a proper technocrat to run the finance ministry – you need someone who can get things done.”

Others were more wary.

“We have no clue of what this guy knows or his financial knowledge,” said a trader at a private bank, who declined to be identified. “The market will take some time to understand his views.”

In the election campaign, Shah helped galvanise the BJP‘s nationalist base and make up for the loss of key state elections in December. Part of his strategy included deftly exploiting national security fears.

“He’s a very hard taskmaster even as party president,” political analyst Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay said. “Very soon he acquires this ability to be one step ahead of the people who are part of his team. The finance ministry or whichever ministry he handles is going to be run with an iron fist.”

India will also have a new foreign minister, with incumbent Sushma Swaraj, who has had health issues, sitting among the audience but not on the dais with Modi’s new ministerial team.

In the federal Indian system of appointments, ministers are sworn in before their specific positions are announced.

A potential replacement for Swaraj could be former foreign secretary, S. Jaishankar, who took an oath as a cabinet minister. A former ambassador to the United States and China, Jaishankar led India’s diplomatic corps during Modi’s first term before retiring in early 2018 and subsequently joining the Tata Group conglomerate.

Shah and Jaishankar were not available for comment.

Many other ministers who are also senior members of the ruling coalition are expected to retain their cabinet jobs.

The BJP controls 303 of the 545 seats in the lower house, which might tempt Modi to push for controversial land and labour reforms to help stimulate the economy.

(Reuters)

As Amit Shah, S. Jaishankar Enter Cabinet, Modi Drops Suresh Prabhu, Maneka Gandhi

In the absence of Sushma Swaraj, Jaishankar may get MEA portfolio; Piyush Goyal may step in for Arun Jaitley as finance minister.

New Delhi: President Ramnath Kovind on Thursday administered the oath to Narendra Modi as Prime Minister of India in the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhawan in the presence of a large number of dignitaries, including heads of other countries.

Notable among those who took oath for the first time and as cabinet ministers were BJP president Amit Shah and former foreign secretary S. Jaishankar. On the other hand, two prominent ministers of the Modi government’s first reign did not figure in the government this time. They were Sushma Swaraj, who was earlier external affairs minister and did not contest the elections on health grounds, and Arun Jaitley, who held the finance portfolio earlier, and who wrote to Modi on Wednesday asking to be exempted for health reasons too. Jaitley underwent a kidney transplant last year and his condition has not yet stabilised.

A total of 58 ministers took oath, of which 25 are cabinet rank, nine are ministers of state (independent charge) and 24 are ministers of state (MoS).

Among former ministers, Arun Jaitley had announced his unavailability due to health, as had Sushma Swaraj, even before the elections. But eyebrows were raised when several high profile ministers from Modi’s first tenure failed to make the cut this time: Suresh Prabhu, Maneka Gandhi, Jayant Sinha and Mahesh Sharma.

After Modi took oath, former BJP president Rajnath Singh, who held the home portfolio previously, was sworn-in, indicating that he would remain the second most important person, at least officially, in the new Modi government.

After Singh, it was Shah who was sworn in. He won his first Lok Sabha election from Gandhinagar. The seat was earlier represented by BJP’s senior leader L.K. Advani. Shah would now be moving from the Rajya Sabha to the Lok Sabha.

Amit Shah being sworn in on May 30, 2019, at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi. Source: Twitter

A number of other senior cabinet ministers of Modi’s first government returned. Nitin Gadkari, who held the shipping, road transport and highways portfolios in the previous government, was also sworn-in.

Former Karnataka chief minister D.V. Sadanand Gowda, who was minister of statistics and programme implementation in the previous government, was also sworn in as a cabinet minister.

Nirmala Sitharaman, who earlier had the defence portfolio, was the first woman to be sworn in on Thursday.

With Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley not in the cabinet, the Cabinet Committee on Security will have two new faces this time.

Piyush Goyal, a confidant of Modi, who was minister of state (independent charge) for power, coal and new and renewable energy initially before taking over as the railway minister, was also sworn in. It is widely believed that in the absence of Jaitley, he may be given the finance ministry. Incidentally, he had also presented the interim budget earlier this year.

Attendees watch ministers of the Bharatiya Janata Party being sworn in on May 30, 2019, at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi. Source: Twitter

The first non-BJP NDA leader to be sworn in was Ram Vilas Paswan of the Lok Janshakti Party. He was previously the minister for consumer affairs, food and public distribution. He is an eight time Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MP, who first became a minister in the V.P. Singh government in 1989.

Narendra Singh Tomar was also sworn in as cabinet minister. He was minister of rural development, minister of parliamentary affairs, panchayati raj and mines in the previous government.

Ravi Shankar Prasad, who defeated BJP-rebel Shatrughan Sinha in Patna Sahib, was again sworn in as a cabinet minister. He was the law minister in the earlier government.

From the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) – BJP’s oldest ally in the NDA – Harsimrat Kaur Badal, who had the food processing portfolio earlier, was re-inducted as a cabinet minister.

The BJP’s Madhya Pradesh leader Thawar Chand Gehlot also took oath as a cabinet minister. He was minister of social justice and empowerment in the earlier government.

Former Uttarakhand chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank was also sworn in as a cabinet minister for the first time.

Former Jharkhand chief minister Arjun Munda was also inducted into the Union cabinet for the first time.

The third woman to be inducted into the Union Cabinet was Smriti Zubin Irani. She held the textiles portfolio in the previous government and had also defeated Congress president Rahul Gandhi in his family bastion of Amethi.

Smriti Irani being sworn in on May 30, 2019, at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi. Source: Twitter

Senior Delhi politician Harsh Vardhan, who was minister for environment and forests and science and technology in the earlier government, was also given the cabinet rank.

Former BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar, who held the human resource development portfolio in the previous government, was also sworn in.

Dharmendra Pradhan, who was minister of petroleum and natural gas and skill development in the previous government, also took oath.

The BJP has also retained Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, who was minister for minority affairs.

Former president of the BJP’s Karnataka unit, Prahlad Joshi, was also administered oath by the president.

Former minister in the Modi government and president of UP BJP, Mahendra Nath Pandey, was also inducted into the cabinet.

Arvind Ganpat Sawant of the Shiv Sena, who was chosen to represent his party in the government, also took oath.

Giriraj Singh, who was minister of state for micro, small and medium enterprises in the previous government, has also been given a cabinet rank.

Former minister of state for agriculture and farmer welfare Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has also been promoted to the Cabinet rank.

In May 2014, a total of just 46 ministers were sworn in. The council then comprised 24 cabinet ministers, ten ministers of state with independent charge and 12 MoS.

By the time the term ended, Modi seemed to move away from the slogan of ‘minimum government, maximum governance’. The size of his council ballooned to 70. At the last count, the first Modi government had 25 cabinet ministers, 11 MoS (independent charge) and 34 MoS.

This time, 25 cabinet ministers have been sworn in.

Gathbandhan, Internal Fights Likely to Jolt BJP in Jharkhand

Several dropped BJP MPs are rebelling, while the state government’s policies have resulted in an anti-incumbency wave.

This election, the BJP is likely to suffer heavy losses in Jharkhand. In the 2014 elections, the party won 12 seats, while the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) got two; no other party could open its account in the state. This time, even BJP insiders feel it would be lucky to get seven seats.

One big reason for this is the popular anger against the party’s candidates. In the Palamu seat reserved for Scheduled Caste candidates, the BJP has fielded sitting MP Vishnu Dayal Ram, an ex-DGP who. Even party cadre in various places were critical of Ram. “He visited very few places and spoke to only a handful of people after winning,” complained a number of BJP activists in Garhwa region. Sources say some local leaders and MLAs are working against Ram and the party has been unable to stop them.

In Chatra, the BJP has fielded sitting MP Sunil Singh. This led to a rebellion in the local unit, even as party leaders accepted he did not work for his constituency. Some sources within the party, on condition of anonymity, alleged that Singh was selected because of the ‘Rajput lobby’ of the party. He also had the backing of Saudan Singh, Rashtriya Sah Sangathan Mantri or national number 2 of the BJP from the RSS. While Singh succeeded in getting the ticket, he has not been so lucky in receiving support from party members and activists.

In the Koderma seat, sitting MP Ravindra Ray has been dropped. Former RJD MLA Annapurna Devi, who lost the assembly election in 2014, has been chosen instead. This has not been received well by the party’s local leaders and cadres.

Also Read: In Jharkhand, the BJP Is Set to Lose Some Ground

In the prestigious Ranchi seat, the BJP has dropped sitting MP Ramtahal Chaudhary to give chance to Sanjay Seth. The former has refused to bow down and is contesting as an independent. Former Union minister Subodh Kant Sahay of the Congress is the Mahagathbandhan’s candidate and Chaudhary’s rebellion may cost the BJP.

In the Giridih seat, to avoid a tussle between MLA Dhullu Mahato and sitting MP Ravindra Pandey, the BJP alloted this it to alliance partner All Jharkhand Students’ Union (AJSU). It has fielded Chadra Prakash Chaudhary. Though things look comparatively normal from a distance, local journalist and political expert Dipak Sawal believes that both Mahato and Pandey are damaging Chaudhary’s prospects, as neither of them want any other candidate to succeed on this seat.

Finally, in the Rajmahal seat reserved for Scheduled Tribe candidates, BJP candidate Hemlal Murmu is an ex-JMM person. He is still associated with the JMM in remote Santhal villages. “Even if Santhal voters of the region want to vote for him, they will press the button of teer-dhanush (bow and arrow, JMM symbol),” said a group of BJP supporters in Litipara assembly segment.

BJP supporters in Jharkhand. Credit: dasraghubar/Twitter

Mahagathbandhan effect

While the BJP is facing issues, the scenario is different for the gathbandhan camp. The alliance is comprised of the Congress, the JMM, ex CM Babulal Marandi’s Jharkhand Vikas Morcha Pragatisheel (JVMP), the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The Congress is contesting seven seats, the JVMP two, the JMM four and RJD one.

The agreement is not working only in one seat, Chatra, as the RJD has also fielded it’s candidate Subhash Yadav against Manoj Yadav of the Congress, the Mahagthbandhan’s official candidate. In all other seats, the partners are respecting the seat sharing formula.

There was a hiccup when Furqan Ansari of the Congress, the tallest Muslim leader of the state decided to contest as an independent when the Godda seat went to the JVM’s Pradeep Yadav. He polled 3.19 lakh votes in the 2014 Lok Sabha election from this seat. Both the Congress and the JMM rushed to convince him to not file nomination papers, managing to control the damage.

Even in the Dhanbad seat, where Kirti Azad of the Congress faced some opposition for being an outsider, the anger has subsided. The only seat where there is anger against the candidate is Rajmahal, against the JMM’s sitting MP Vijay Kumar Hansdak.

JMM MLA and spokesperson Kunal Sarangi says that the alliance partners are confident of transferring their respective votes. Across the state, a majority of the respondents supporting different Mahagathbadhan parties also agreed, giving credence to Sarangi’s claims.

Also Read: As Ranchi Goes to Polls, Slum Dwellers Struggle for Food Security

Among a majority of tribal and Muslim voters, the Mahagathbandhan was the first choice. Only Arjun Munda, who has a lead even among the Munda tribal voters of Khunti Lok Sabha seat, appeared to be an exception to this norm. The possible transfer of votes was also visible in Koderma, where the CPI(ML)’s MLA and Lok Sabha candidate Rajkumar Yadav, appears to be losing momentum. Yadav was the runner up in the past two Lok Sabha elections, but Muslim voters, who solidly backed him previously, have shifted decisively in favour of the Mahagathbandhan’s Babulal Marandi. However, recent reports of RJD’s Chatra candidate Subhash Yadav supporting the CPI(ML) leader may bring him back into the contest.

Anti-incumbency, land rights, jobs and other issues

In Jharkhand, assembly elections occur several months after the Lok Sabha elections. The BJP won 37 out of the 81 seats in the state, forming a government with alliance partner AJSU, which won five seats.

Raghubar Das, an OBC, became the CM, the first non-Adivasi to do so. Over the past five years, the Raghubar Das government has faced heat from the opposition for failing to deliver on a number of promises like proper electricity supply and jobs.

The government’s attempts to amend the Chota Nagpur Tenancy Act – legislated under the British to protect land rights of tribals – to make land available for industrial purposes witnessed extreme opposition from tribal organisations and opposition.

“Even after it was passed under protective cover of marshals in the house, it was turned down by the governor, as she thought it was anti-tribal,” claims Kunal Sarangi.

“The amendment made it clear to most people that this government is against the interests of tribals,” says Ranchi-based anti-mining activist Xavier Dias. Further, shutting of some government-run schools led to loss of jobs. This triggered a movement, as reports of suicides by some shiksha mitras cropped up in the news.

“Due to all these reasons, there is a strong anti-incumbency wave against the Raghubar government. The next assembly election may throw up a new government. Everybody is busy to adapt to this possible change of power in the state. This is why even a section of upper castes and business people are supporting the Mahagathbandhan,” summed up a senior RSS functionary, on the condition of anonymity.

Raghubar Das. Credit: PTI

Seat to seat scenario

Three seats of Palamu region – Chatra, Palamu and Lohardaga, voted during the fourth phase. The BJP, which won all of these seats, is struggling to retain even one. In Ranchi and Koderma, infighting may damage it. The party appears to be strong in Hazaribagh and a slender lead in Khunti and Jamshedpur seats.

In the three seats of Santhal Pargana, while JMM candidates seem to be ahead in Dumka (where Shibu Soren is again the party’s candidate) and Rajmahal seats, the Godda seat is witnessing a tight contest between sitting MP Nishikant Dubey and the JVMP’s Pradeep Yadav.

In Koderma, the Gathbandhan candidate and JVM supremo Babulal Marandi seems to have a lead, while in Kolhan’s Singhbhum, Congress candidate Geeta Koda (wife of ex CM Madhu Koda) seems better placed in a close contest against the BJP state president and sitting MP Laxman Gilua. In Dhanbad and Giridih, both the Gathbandhan and the NDA are locked in a close contest.

While the JMM’s Kunal Sarangi claims that the grand alliance will win 13 seats in the state, BJP insiders say the NDA will be able to retain at least seven. Even by that count, it is likely to lose five seats in Jharkhand, which is not negligible in the present election, where every seat counts.

Rajan Pandey is a freelance journalist and co-author of Battleground UP: Politics in the Land of Ram.

Watch | Khunti: The Birthplace of Birsa Munda, and the Pathalgadi Rebellion

Former chief minister of Jharkhand Arjun Munda has replaced eight-term sitting MP from Khunti, Karia Munda, as the BJP candidate this time.

Sadak se Sansad has reached the Khunti Lok Sabha constituency in Jharkhand. Birsa Munda was born in the Ulihatu village, which is now in the Khunti district of the constituency. More recently, Khunti was in the news for the Pathalgadi movement. Former chief minister of Jharkhand Arjun Munda has replaced eight-term sitting MP from Khunti, Karia Munda, as the BJP candidate this time.

In Jharkhand, the BJP Is Set to Lose Some Ground

The BJP holds all four of the state’s 14 Lok Sabha seats that will vote on May 6, but is likely to lose at least two.

New Delhi: With two former chief ministers, one former and one current Union minister in the fray, Jharkhand is going to witness an interesting election on May 6. Voting will take place for four of the state’s 14 Lok Sabha seats in the fifth phase of elections on Monday. The high profile seats of Ranchi, Hazaribagh, Khunti and Koderma will vote during this phase.

Currently, all the seats are held by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). However, it is unlikely that the party will retain all the seats. It is believed that the party will lose at least two seats – Ranchi and Koderma – for several reasons. Interestingly, the BJP has not fielded a sitting MP from any constituency apart from Hazaribagh.

Ranchi

This is seat is currently represented by veteran politician Ram Tahal Choudhary. He resigned from the BJP in early April after businessman Sanjay Seth was given the ticket in his place.

Choudhary is contesting as an independent candidate and is likely to effect Seth’s prospects. Also, in the fray is Congress’s Subodh Kant Sahay, former Union tourism minister.

In the last election, Choudhary defeated Sahay by nearly 2 lakh votes. While Choudhary has represented Ranchi five times, Sahay has been elected thrice. As a leader of the Kurmi OBC caste, Choudhary enjoys a huge base. His community will play a decisive role in the election.

Also Read: As Ranchi Goes to Polls, Slum Dwellers Struggle for Food Security

According to a report, there are around 6 lakh Kurmi voters in the constituency – nearly 35% of the total population. Moreover, the Kurmis have recently demanded to be recognised as a Scheduled Tribe community. This demand has not been fulfilled and a section of the community has vowed to vote against the BJP.

On the other hand, BJP nominee Seth, a Punjabi Hindu, has appeal in urban areas. There are six assembly segments in the constituency, a majority in rural areas. Given the arithmetic, it is likely that Choudhary will mainly eat into Seth’s vote, helping Sahay.

Khunti

This Lok Sabha constituency is the birthplace of tribal leader and icon Birsa Munda. It was recently in the news for the Pathalgadi movement, a tribal uprising. Currently, it is represented by BJP’s Kariya Munda, an eight-time MP.

He was first elected from this seat in 1977 on the Janata Party ticket. However, the party has decided not to field him. Senior BJP leader and three-time CM Arjun Munda will contest instead. Unlike Ranchi, there is no rebellion here. In fact, Kariya Munda has vowed to support the former CM.

Moreover, the Congress candidate Kalicharan Munda does not have the wherewithal to give a tough fight to the BJP’s candidate, though he comes from a political family. His father T. Muchirai Munda was a Congress MLA. His younger brother Neelkant Singh Munda is a minister in the current BJP state government. In the last Lok Sabha elections, Kalicharan Munda stood third.

It is also important to note that Arjun Munda tactically supported the the Pathalgadi movement. Overall, he does not have an anti-tribal image, like current chief minister Raghubar Das.

Also read: Jharkhand Mukti Morcha Manifesto Misses Listing Mob Lynching as an Issue

Though there is anti-incumbency against the BJP, several factors give the party an edge. Given Arjun Munda’s own image, the absence of a strong opponent and the blessings of the senior Munda, the former CM is likely to retain the party’s traditional seat.

Arjun Munda

Koderma

In this seat, another former CM – Babulal Marandi – is in the fray. He was the first CM of the state and was elected from this seat several times. Marandi, a former member of the BJP, resigned from the party and the Lok Sabha membership in 2006. He founded his own party, the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha –Prajatantrik [JVM (P)]. In the subsequent by-election, he retained the seat and won again in 2009. However, he lost heavily in the last election, finishing third.

But this time around, the situation is different as he is a joint candidate of the mahagathbandhan – a state-level alliance between the Congress, JMM, RJD and his party. Moreover, the BJP’s sitting MP Ravindra Kumar Ray has also not been given a ticket. In his place, former MLA Annapurna Devi, who was with the RJD until recently, will contest. Interestingly, before she was announced as the BJP candidate, Devi extended support to Marandi. Notably, in the last assembly elections (2014) Devi lost her seat to the BJP’s Neera Yadav.

Apart from Marandi and Devi, another important candidate contesting from the constituency is the Communist Party of India (Marxist and Leninist) leader and MLA Rajkumar Yadav. He finished second in the last Lok Sabha elections. This area is a stronghold of the Left and the ground situation suggests that there is likely to be a fight between Marandi and Yadav, with Marandi having the edge.

Hazaribagh

Union minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha is seeking a re-election from this seat. He created an uproar last year by felicitating convicts of a cow-related mob lynching case in the Ramgarh area of the constituency. In June 2017, Alimuddin Ansari was killed in the area. A local BJP leader, a member of the RSS’s student wing ABVP and nine others were involved in the case and were later convicted.

Also read: ‘Treated as Mere Vote Bank,’ Say Muslims Left Out of Jharkhand’s Grand Alliance

Before, Sinha his father Yashwant Sinha has represented this seat thrice as a member of the BJP. Against him is the Congress’s Gopal Sahu, the younger brother of former Ranchi MP Shiv Prasad Sahu. In the last election, the junior Sinha defeated the Congress’s Saurabh Narayan Singh by a margin of 1.5 lakh votes. The Communist Party of India (CPI) veteran leader and former Hazaribagh MP Bhuneshwar Prasad Mehta is also contesting from the seat. He finished a distant third in the last elections.

In this constituency, the BJP is expected to have a comfortable victory. The Congress is not in a position to put up a tough fight. The party announced its candidate just two days before the last date of nomination. The constituency has been one a stronghold of the BJP.

Opposition Unites to Fight BJP on Land Act Amendment in Jharkhand

It is believed that the Raghubar Das-led government will use the amendment to give land away to corporate houses without local people’s consent.

Ranchi: Jharkhand is on the boil again; this time, because of presidential assent to the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment) Act, 2017. Opposition parties, social organisations and anti-displacement groups have termed the land amendment Act by the BJP government a ‘death warrant’ and united themselves in order to ‘uproot’ the BJP from the state in the 2019 general elections and assembly elections.

At a meeting convened by Hemant Soren, leader of the opposition and executive president of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) on June 18, the Congress, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM), Left parties and several social organisations decided to form a joint coordination committee to ‘expose the BJP’s hidden agenda’ on the Land Act amendment. The united opposition has announced numerous programmes to oppose the amendment of the Act. They have also composed slogans like ‘jamin bachao‘, ‘jiwan bachao, Jharkhand bachao’ (save land, save life, save Jharkhand) and ‘Jal, jungle, jameen ki loot, nahi kisiko chhoot (No freedom to loot land, forest and water) – which will perhaps become catchphrases for contesting the 2019 elections against the BJP

“The land amendment Act is a hidden agenda of BJP to hand over huge tracts of land to corporate houses for mining and industries in Jharkhand. This will cause huge displacement. Even before this amendment, displacement of tribals and non-tribal settlers has already taken place. We will go to the people and with their support defeat BJP in its hidden agenda,” said Hemant Soren. He is leading the united coalition against the BJP’s ‘hidden agenda’ and it was on his call that all Opposition parties and social organisations held a four-hour long meeting on June 18.

The Raghubar Das-led BJP government had passed the Land Amendment Act in the Jharkhand assembly in August 2017 and had sent it to President Ram Nath Kovind for his assent.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das. Credit: PTI

Many crucial provisions of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 have been amended by the BJP government in Jharkhand.

Though the copy of Amendment Bill, that finally got the assent of the President, isn’t in circulation (the government seems to have kept it away from the public), copies of the draft Bill are available with the people. As per this, the amendment ‘relieves’ sub-section (ii) of Section 2 in Chapter II (dealing with Social Impact Assessment), and ‘some’ provisions of Chapter III (dealing with Food Security and acquisition of agricultural land).

The government has kept the sub-section (i) of Section 2 in Chapter II – which mandates Social Impact Assessment. But as it does away with subsection (ii) of Section 2, the social impact study will actually be devoid of substance, and will only be for the sake of it.

Further, the amendment also has fiddled with the ‘consent’ of landowners for the acquisition. All that the gram sabha now is empowered to do is to give its ‘advice’.

While the government of Jharkhand sees little utility for Social Impact Assessment, the government of its neighbouring state Odisha has come up with an elaborate system to do it.

“The state government shall establish an independent organisation (hereafter referred to as the State SIA Unit), which shall be responsible for ensuring that the SIA study is conducted by such persons or bodies other than the requiring body as per the provisions of the Act”, reads the Odisha Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Rules, 2015.

“This amendment is a total disregard of the 2013 Land Act passed by the UPA government and supported by the BJP. Doing away with SIA is barbaric. The government wants to take lands of the villagers and it is not even ready to study the impact of the acquisition on them,” said Salkhan Murmu, a former Member of Parliament and president of Sengel Abhiyan.

Copy of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment), 2017, Bill. Photo by special arrangement.

Copy of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment), 2017, Bill. Credit: Special arrangement.

Murmu said, according to the amendment, the government can acquire land with just a notification and does not even have to conduct ‘public hearing’ of gram sabhas – a crucial provision of 2013 Land Act. The 2013 Act provides that 80% of landowners, in case of rural areas, should ‘consent’ to the land acquisition, while in urban areas, the figure is 70%. The word ‘consent’ has been done away with by the amendment, Murmu pointed out. “This law is more draconian the 1894 Land Acquisition Act that had been amended in 2013,” he stressed. The Sengel Abhiyan had called a Jharkhand bandh on June 18 in this regard.

Status quo

Jharkhand is a mineral-rich state, with 40% of India’s mineral deposits. Many mining and industrial houses have their stakes here. Though the amendment says that lands under this Act would be acquired for public purposes like ‘school, college, university, hospital, panchayat bhawan, rail, road, waterways, irrigation, pipeline, transmission and other government buildings’, leaders don’t quite believe that the lands will not be acquired for industry and other public purposes.

Out of 14, the BJP today has 12 MPs in Jharkhand. After six Jharkhand Vikas Morcha legislators crossed over to it, the ruling party now has now 43 out of the 81. The BJP government had passed the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Jharkhand Amendment) Act, 2017 from the Assembly on August 2017, and sent it to the President for assent.

The government in Jharkhand has been making all out efforts to avail land in Jharkhand for projects, particularly for industrial houses, by amending various land Acts. Earlier, in November 2016, it had tried to amend the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act and Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act. But steep opposition by tribals, farmers and anti-displacement bodies made Governor Draupadi Murmu not give her consent to the Bill.

However, Jharkhand revenue and land reforms minister Amar Kumar Bauri has maintained that the Act is in favour of the people of Jharkhand. “The amendment will help the government do public welfare works,” Bauri stressed. BJP state president Laxman Gilua too reiterated that the government’s land Act amendment is pro-tribal and pro-poor.

Amid protests by the opposition, the Jharkhand Assembly on Saturday passed the Religious Independence Bill, 2017. Credit: PTI

Amid protests by the opposition, the Jharkhand Assembly had passed the Religious Independence Bill, 2017. Credit: PTI

However, the BJP government’s stand on the amendment has few takers. It is being looked at with suspicion.

“The BJP government is bulldozing itself on the people. It is a political battle and it has to be fought politically. The Congress has joined hands with other Opposition parties for 2019 elections and we all will unite to uproot the BJP from Jharkhand,” said Ajoy Kumar, state president of the Congress.

Numerous land Act amendment efforts by BJP government, including the Anti-Conversion Bill (Religious Freedom Bill 2017), has created an atmosphere against the ruling party in Jharkhand. The tribal people in particular and non-tribal land holders have started feeling that they are unsafe as the government is taking away many of their rights through amendments. The BJP government may have given a tool in the hands of the Opposition for 2019 elections – an atmosphere for which has already been created in State.

A few days ago, former chief minister Arjun Munda, also a tribal, had expressed his displeasure over the state of affairs in Jharkhand.

BJP national president Amit Shah is slated to visit Jharkhand next month in order to see preparations for the 2019 elections. Meanwhile, some industrial houses are reportedly looking for lands for industry, particularly in Santhal Pargana – the bastion of JMM and tribal politics.

“Our party president and former chief minister Babulal Marandi has already said that a united government by the Opposition, will do away with all the anti-people laws of the BJP government in the first cabinet meeting itself after the 2019 elections. The united Opposition is going to the public against the misrule of BJP,” said Bandhu Tirkey, former human resource development minister and Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) leader.

Non-political organisations too see that there is a popular discontent across Jharkhand which has already become the rallying point against BJP. “The June 18 meeting led by the JMM set the tone for 2019 elections. The Opposition and social organisations are to go to the village to explain to them the Land Act amendments,” said Prem Chand Murmu, president of Adivasi Budhijivi Manch.

As per a plan set by the Opposition parties and anti-displacement organisations, effigies of BJP government will be burnt in front of block offices on June 19, dharnas would be staged in front of district offices on June 21. A sankalp (resolution) would be taken on Santhal Hul Diwas to fight the land amendment at Bhognadih in Santhal Pargana, the birthplace of Santhal fighters Sido-Kanhu, on June 30. Over a lakh of tribals gather every year on June 30 to commemorate Santhal Hul—Santhal Revolution against the British and the moneylenders. On July 2, all Opposition will sit on a day-long dharna at Raj Bhawan in Ranchi.

“A dharna also would be held at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, following which a delegation of all Opposition and anti-displacement bodies would meet President Ram Nath Kovind to hand over a memorandum opposing the amendment,” said Hemant.

Hemant has been asked to form the coordination committee in which representatives of all Opposition parties and anti-displacement bodies would be members. It will chalk out strategy to fight the Land Act amendment and other issues affecting the people. He is also the projected chief ministerial candidate of the Opposition for 2019 Assembly elections, atmosphere for which appeared to have set in with opposition to Land Act amendment of the BJP.

The BJP has enjoyed a strong support base in Jharkhand since the days of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, whose Central regime saw the bifurcation of Bihar and the formation of Jharkhand 18 years ago. The state supplies a good number of MPs to the Centre every general election. But the Land Act amendments will likely weigh on the fortunes of the BJP this time.

Santosh K. Kiro is an independent journalist. He is also the author of Life and Times of Jaipal Singh Munda and Munda Folktales and Elephant Stories.