Express View: Dishom Guru Shibu Soren
After his father's death, Soren led a band of youth in Santhal Pargana and initiated a movement called Dhan Kati. The group encouraged Adivasis to harvest crops from lands that were illegally grabbed by moneylenders when they failed to pay off the debt. Soon, this movement became an organised struggle for the recognition of Adivasi rights over jal, jungle, zameen. In 1972, Soren, along with A K Roy, a Marxist leader, and Binod Bihari Mahato, founded the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and revived the movement for statehood. To bring the industrial workers, sadans, the non-tribal natives of Jharkhand, and Adivasis together was not an easy task. Soren realised that the dream of a separate Jharkhand would not be fulfilled without the participation of non-tribal communities. He sought to change the definition of Diku — for him, the term no longer only meant 'outsiders', but referred to those who exploited Jharkhand's resources. His dream of a separate state materialised only in 2000.
Political instability, allegations of corruption and violence didn't let any of the CMs complete their tenure in the new state until 2014, when the BJP made Raghubar Das the first non-Adivasi chief minister. Soren's own political life was also shadowed by controversies. In 2004, within two months of becoming Union minister of coal and mines, he had to resign due to an arrest warrant for his alleged role in the Chirudih massacre of 1975, in which 10 people were killed. In 2008, a fast-track court acquitted him, citing lack of evidence. He faced allegations of taking bribes to save the minority government of P V Narasimha Rao in 1993. The SC in 1998 ruled that legislators enjoy impunity from criminal prosecution in bribery cases related to their votes and speeches in Parliament — the judgment was overruled in 2024. However, controversies could not take away from Soren's achievements. After Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda, Dishom Guru Shibu Soren was the leader who successfully reimagined Adivasi politics beyond the limits of identity, sub-nationalism and language.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
32 minutes ago
- Time of India
India's state refiners pause Russia oil buys as US adds pressure
India's state-owned oil refiners are pulling back from purchases of Russian crude for now, according to people with direct knowledge of the companies' procurement plans, as Washington ratchets up the pressure on New Delhi over the flows with a wave of harsh tariffs. Companies including Indian Oil Corp. , Bharat Petroleum Corp. and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. plan to skip spot purchases of the crude in the upcoming buying cycle, until there's clear government guidance, said the people, who asked not to be identified as they aren't authorized to speak publicly. That will affect buying of the Russia's Urals cargoes for October-loading, they added. The global oil market has zeroed in on India's crude purchasing after President Donald Trump doubled the levy on all Indian exports to the US as a direct punishment for the country's refiners taking Russian crude. The escalation — which hasn't yet been matched by similar action against China, another major buyer — is meant to pressure on Moscow to end the war in Ukraine. The tension has swung futures this week as traders assess the odds of disruption to flows, as well as Moscow's ability to find alternative buyers should Indian refiners opt to take fewer barrels. Brent was little changed near $67 a barrel on Thursday, following a five-day drop. Officially, New Delhi hasn't given any direction to refiners to stop buying Moscow's crude, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government pushing back against Trump's tariffs. Bloomberg earlier reported that refiners had been asked to draw up plans for buying non-Russian crude. An oil ministry spokesman didn't immediately reply to an email seeking comment. Separately, IOC, BPCL and HPCL didn't reply to messages from Bloomberg seeking comment. Beyond term contracts, oil producers and refiners typically deal with purchases in short-run cycles, with cargoes booked about one-and-a-half to two months ahead of loading. That planned-ahead pattern allows users to ensure they have enough on hand to meet their requirements. While overall purchases of October-loading Urals by India's refiners are unlikely to drop to zero, a dip could prompt a rush for other grades, with US, Middle Eastern and African cargoes as alternatives, said traders, who buy and sell across the region. Discussions for October cargoes have not yet started, though traders foresee deeper Russian discounts and more offers to China, which doesn't typically take much of the variety. In late-July, purchases of September-loading Urals concluded with India taking fewer barrels due to pricey offers. Since then, state-owned refiners have issued a slew of tenders, soaking up spot cargoes from other regions. Private processors Reliance Industries Ltd. and Nayara Energy Ltd., meanwhile, have been quiet, with the latter grappling with a steep drop in run rates following sanctions imposed by the European Union. Cargoes of Urals — Russia's benchmark crude grade from the west of the country — for August- and September-loading are likely to be delivered as planned, unless New Delhi advises otherwise, the people said. In recent days, tankers have offloaded some cargoes at Indian ports, albeit with some slight delays. At its peak, India imported more than 2 million barrels a day of Russian oil , up from almost zero purchases before the Ukraine war. 'There would be some operational disruptions for a period, but the crude supply-demand would balance out,' said R. Ramachandran, former director of refineries at Bharat Petroleum. If Russian supplies are more difficult, 'Middle East crudes — with the geographical advantages and a wide range of quality will be a prime substitute, especially from Saudi and Iraq,' he said.
The Hindu
32 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Electoral roll to be used for caste census in Karnataka
The State government has decided to utilise the electoral roll in the State for conducting the social and educational survey (caste census) for 15 days from September 22. The Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission has sought the government's permission for the procedure to be followed for conducting the survey. The Karnataka Cabinet on Thursday approved a method of using electoral rolls in the State for conducting the survey using digital technology. Speaking at a press conference after the Cabinet meeting, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K. Patil said that the survey would be conducted in digital format. The development and supervision of the software for the digital survey would be undertaken by the e-Governance Department. He said that the publicly available electoral roll was used by the H.N. Nagamohan Das Commission for internal reservation for 101 Scheduled Castes in the State for every person aged above six. Similarly, the Backward Classes Commission would adopt the H.N. Nagamohan Das Commission's model and conduct the survey, Mr. Patil said. 50% quota to go Mr. Patil said the Cabinet has decided to do away with the mandatory 50% quota for students of the community in the non-Muslim Minority educational institutions. The colleges and technical educational institutions run by non-Muslim Minority managements would not require to enrol 50% of students from their own community to obtain Minority status. This move was intended to support communities such as Christians, Jains, Sikhs, and Parsis, who were struggling to meet the 50% threshold due to their relatively small population in the State. Among others, the Cabinet has approved ₹171.91 under the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development's (NABARD) Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) for 13 cold storages of the Agriculture Department. It also approved the Karnataka Employees' State Insurance Society as per Employees' State Insurance Corporation guidelines.
Deccan Herald
2 hours ago
- Deccan Herald
Amid evictions in Assam, AASU to resume anti-CAA agitation from Friday
Passed in 2019, the CAA allows non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan till December 2014 to get Indian citizenship. The Northeast roared in violent protest against the CAA.
