Days after HC order, Adivasi body insists it will go ahead with its symbolic hunt
Days after the Jharkhand High Court directed the State government to enforce the Central government's orders prohibiting non-vegetarian food, harming animals, and excessive tourism on the Jain pilgrimage site of Parasnath Hill, Marang Buru Sanvta Susaar Baisi (MBSSB), a local Santhal association, insisted that it will go ahead with its traditional hunting ritual next week on the hill, which is of religious significance to the Adivasi community as well.
MBSSB president and local BJP leader Sikander Hembrom explained the cultural and historic significance of the tradition. 'Our ritual has been going on for centuries. We will go ahead with the symbolic hunting ritual on May 12,' he told The Hindu.
The ritual is a symbolic hunt arranged in the forests of the Marang Buru, where Santhal people spend a night hunting and then gather for a two-day tribal assembly in a nearby village to settle community-level issues. The hunt is largely symbolic and does not include killing animals.
Centre's prohibition
Mr. Hembrom's assertion comes days after a Bench of the Jharkhand High Court ordered the State government to increase the deployment of home guards on the hill to enforce the orders of the Union Environment Ministry, which had notified it as a special eco-sensitive zone in 2019 besides prohibiting certain activities in and around the area through an office memorandum.
The memorandum had also put a stay on the State government's plans to turn the area into a location for religious eco-tourism, which had faced backlash from the Jain community across the country. At the time, tension had sparked between the Santhals and the Jain pilgrims, with Mr. Hembrom arguing that their culture and worshipping rights on the hill was under attack. He said the ritual has been held on the hill routinely and never required any permission from the district administration. 'We will proceed as usual. There will only be tensions if there is any attempt to stop us. We have never made fun of Jain rituals or pilgrims, we have never stopped their worship on the hills. Why are they attacking our culture?' he said.
With the hunt scheduled next week, Superintendent of Police, Giridih, told The Hindu that they are yet to receive any inputs on any possible adverse event. 'But we are monitoring the situation,' he said.
The dispute between the Jain and Adivasi communities over worshipping rights on the Parasnath hill or Marang Buru has been going on for more than a century, according to historical records. The 1911 Census had recorded this dispute by mentioning a suit filed by a Swetambar Jain sect, which had reached the Privy Council. The latter, though, established the customary rights of Adivasis.
Repeated requests
Over the last few years, the MBSSB has written several times to the Centre and the State governments, alleging there has been a concerted effort from members of the Jain community to file similarly-worded complaints on the PM Jan Shikayat portal, denying the existence of the Marang Buru ritual and that 'non-Jains' had 'illegally' established worship practices on the hill.
The High Court order had come on May 2 on a Public Interest Litigation filed by Ahmedabad-based 'Jyot', which describes itself as an organisation with the aim of 'spreading the nectar of knowledge' and 'helping an individual enrich their thoughts'. The NGO, started in 2009 by Jainacharya Yugbhushansuriji, said in its petition that it protects religious rights across the country, adding that the Parasnath was as important to Jains as Ayodhya was to Hindus. It noted it has collected over 7 lakh signatures to 'protect the sanctity of the Hill'.
While the State government argued that the petition was a disguised attempt by the NGO to restrict the Adivasi customs and rituals, its lawyers opposed the submission and said the organisation did not intend to do that. The court agreed and had issued the directions to implement the Centre's orders and asked the State government to increase deployment of home guards to enforce the order.
The court is expected to hear the matter again in July for compliance of its directions.
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