By Arun Srivastava
With the RSS hastening up the process of fattening its Hindu rank by inducting the tribals, the alarm bell for complete dissipation of their identity has started ringing for the adivasis and they are ready to assert their independent distinctiveness by confronting the RSS pracharaks.
Discontent prevailing amongst the tribals against the RSS and Narendra Modi government has started acquiring completely new character and dimension. This time the tribals are determined to take their fight to the saffron sanctuary and expose their machination. This is a departure from the traditional mode of protest. There is a perceptible change in the latest mode of fight and the old style of protest. The adivasis are bent on fighting RSS campaign in Jharkhand, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and some parts of the North East.
Adivasis might not have invigorated the agitation for their recognition as an independent identity, separate from Hindu, if the RSS and Modi had not installed a prominent Adivasi face, Draupadi Murmu as the President of India. Apparently for the RSS and Modi it was purely a move to woo the tribal voters, but the Adivasi leaders could see through their game. The saffron brigade desires to project her as the Hindu face of the tribals. This is a strategic move to swell its support base as a prelude to turning India into a Hindu Rashtra. For ensuring RSS to achieve its mission the Adivasi are not ready to sacrifice their independent identity, the tribal nationality.
By nature the adivasis are not scared of revolting against their oppressors. The history of India is full of the Adivasi revolt against the perpetrators and oppressors. The Adivasi leaders reminisce how the BJP and RSS tried to convert the tribals regions and states in the country into the colony of the corporate sector and big business houses. They allege that RSS and BJP have yet another purpose behind clubbing them with the Hindus is, they could easily access and grab their lands. They will be denied the statutory protections which they now get. Their exploitation will attain a reckless proportion.
But they now have become conscious of not to waste their precious lives. While adivasis continue to sacrifice their lives for achieving their mission the blood thirsty governments, administered by the bureaucracy, are provoking them by adopting a stubborn attitude and refusing to relent and honour their views and especially snubbing their dead souls.
In view of the recent political, administrative developments and changes, the tribals have embarked on the path of setting new narratives by challenging the techniques which the exploiters and especially government have been resorting to perpetrate exploitation and repression. Though the rightist forces, especially the RSS has been describing the adivasis for pretty longer period as the Vanvasis and descendants of Manu, of late the Adivasi organisation have given a new dimension to their protest against them.
Adivasis never always refused to be described as Hindus. They have been fighting for recognition of their tradition celebration Sarna. On the both the issues the government has been adopting a hostile approach. While Modi government and RSS are determined to incorporate them as Hindus in the statute books, it is indeed inexplicable why they are reluctant to recognise the Sarna. The situation has acquired seriousness only after Modi chose Draupadi Murmu as the presidential candidate. This strengthened the suspicion the tribals were nursing that it intends to deny their Adivasi identity and present them as the members of the extended Hindu family, the political line of Savarkar.
While the RSS is hell bent on recognising them as the Hindus, it is not at all willing to give them at least the status of Adivasi. RSS still recognises them as Vanvasi. While they have been fighting against the exploitative mechanism of the rightist forces from Sidhu Kanu days, the major stride has been launched to openly denounce their being described as Vanvasi and the descendants of Manu. They seek explanation from the RSS leaders why they have been averse to greet them by saying “Johar”. The major charge against the RSS and rightist forces is they desire to crush the Adivasi culture and tradition.
It is not that their leaders have not waged a struggle against this manipulative scheme of the rightists and forces espousing the cause of the Dikus (outsiders), but in the present situation, a serious effort is being made to give a broader theoretical and ideological canvas. The vicious design to displace the adivasis from their lands is the part of the conspiracy to annihilate their original nationality and culture.
Barely a month back the speakers at the meet of an Adivasi organisation openly accused the RSS of resorting to dubious game to present the adivasis as the Hindus, which they are not. Tribal leaders sought to know from the RSS why were they reluctant to accept the fact that adivasis are the Mool Nivasis, not the Vanvasis. The RSS describes them as Vanvasis. This word has suspicious connotation. The primary intention of the RSS is to present the adivasis in poor light who are incapable to rule. They are alien to the human norms and culture. The tribal leaders vehemently rejected this contention.
According to these leaders, RSS is adamant to make people, even a greater section of adivasis, believe that they are Hindus and do not have any separate identity. Some time back, the chief minister of Jharkhand Hemant Soren articulating the feelings of the adivasis had told the audience at Harvard University that adivasis were discriminated in the country. He said a separate code in the upcoming Census is the need of the hour. He lamented; “Tribals have been demoralised for centuries”
Adivasis have illustrious history of the fight of their heroes against the Britishers and their rule. In Independent India too they fought for their rights. But unfortunately instead of conceding their demands the governments crushed their movement for being extremist and Maoist. But in recent times they have launched afresh agitation for recognising their religion as ‘Sarna’ and ensure their enumeration under this category during the upcoming census. Once Sarna is recognised as their religion the RSS cannot project them as Hindus. By recognizing Sarna as a separate religion other than Hindu, the RSS will lose a significant support base.
The movement started taking a concrete shape in June 2021. The adivasis who mainly belonged to the Santhal tribe, raised their demands under the aegis of the Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan (tribal empowerment campaign) from as many as 250 scheduled tribes-dominated blocks from 50 districts of Jharkhand, Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal and Assam. They also held a mass prayer at Jantar Mantar in Delhi seeking blessings of their deities and revered leaders. The agitation was organised to observe the anniversary of Santhal Rebellion against the British on June 30, 1855.
In a strategic move the attack by the rightist forces on the Adivasi nationality and culture has been made the primary agenda of the movement. The RSS is finding it tough to counter the cultural insurgence. This is for the first time the RSS is finding itself on the mat. The agitators meanwhile have pledged to intensify their struggle to force the government to recognise the ‘Sarna dharma code’.
The leaders reiterate; “We Adivasis are neither Hindus nor Christians. We have our own way of life, religious practices, customs, culture and religious thoughts, different from any other religion. We worship nature and not idols. There is neither Varna system in our society or any sort of inequality”. India is home to over 12 crore tribal people. They have been recognised as Scheduled Tribes but ironically neither their religion nor their independent identity has been recognised.
In the rise of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha under Shibu Soren and Marxist leader A K Ray, the RSS had to face severe challenge to their hegemony. They found it tough to change their approach and style in Jharkhand, but in North East India they took to dividing the tribals on caste and sub caste lines and converting them into Hindus. Sources maintain that they are having a field day now in Arunachal and other states like the missionaries had earlier
The situation could be understood from the simple fact that after ten years of his death, Ramakant Keshav Desphande, founder of the RSS-affiliated Adivasi Kalyan Ashram is worshipped like a god. New Chingsa is a village of 80-odd Tangsa tribal families in Changlang district bordering Myanmar. It is incredible indeed as Tangsa people have traditionally been animists. Their supreme spirit, the Rangfraa, has no temple, no idol or any form. But the scenario has changed. The spirit is now placed in temple where devotees chant “Jai Rangfraa, Jai Rangfraa, JaiRangfraa.” His idol looks like a Mongoloid white Shiva. This is the creation of the RSS affiliate. The animist belief system of Tangsa in now a sect of Hinduism and Rangfraa a clone of Shiva. The RSS is has been spreading to areas where the organization had no support base earlier. (IPA Service)
