Jharkhand Party

History

Formation

The 19th-century sociopolitical movement in the lower Chotanagpur region, initiated by tribals to address their issues, gave rise to several tribal rights organizations, predominantly led by educated Christian tribals. One of the earliest was the Chotanagpur Unnati Samaj, founded in 1915 by Rev. Joel Lakra with help of Theble Oraon, Bandi Oraon and Paul Dayal, aimed at promoting education and social reform. The organization demanded autonomy and socio-cultural protection to the Simon Commission during its visit to Patna in 1928. Around the same time, the Chotanagpur Catholic Sabha was formed under the leadership of Boniface Lakra and Ignes Beck (1928–1929), while non-convert Munda tribals established the Munda Sabha in 1929, although it failed to garner broad support. In 1931, peasant group broke away from the Unnati Samaj and founded the Chotanagpur Kisan Sabha, with Laurentius Barla as president and Theble Oraon as secretary, focusing on agrarian and cultural concerns in the Oraon belts. Similarly, in the early 1930s, some tribal traditionalists established the Sarna Sabha and began articulating the "Sarna" ethno-religious identity bloc. By this time, the Unnati Samaj had reorganized as the Adivasi Sabha, a secular front for tribal consolidation. However, in 1937 Bihar Provincial Assembly elections, only the Catholic Sabha managed limited success, winning two out of thirty-eight seats from Chotanagpur, while other tribal groups failed to gain representation. This electoral setback revealed the fragmented nature of tribal politics and prompted calls for unity, and in May 1938 the Adivasi Mahasabha () was formed through consolidation of the Sabhas, with Theodore Surin as president and Paul Dayal as secretary. The Mahasabha began advocating the idea of a Jharkhand state in the Bihar Legislative Assembly in June 1938. At the Mahasabha's second annual session in Ranchi in January 1939, Jaipal Singh Munda was elected president. Following his election, the Mahasabha secured notable victories in the 1939 District Board elections, winning twenty seats in Singhbhum and sixteen in Ranchi. To support its political agenda and mobilization efforts beyond Ranchi and Singhbhum, the Mahasabha began publishing materials such as "Adivasi" and "Adivasi Sakam".

However, dissatisfaction with Christian influence in the Mahasabha led to a split in July 1939, when Theble Oraon founded the Sanatan Adivasi Mahasabha to represent traditionalist, non-Christian tribals aligned with the nationalist movement. At the Ramgarh session of Congress in 1940, Munda discussed with Subash Chandra Bose regarding Jharkhand state. Amid rejection of Jharkhand statehood demand from influential political leaders and growing internal disagreements, the Mahasabha's performance declined in the 1946 Bihar Assembly elections, securing only three seats, with Jaipal Singh defeated by Congress candidate Dr. P. C. Mitra. However, in the 1946 Constituent Assembly elections, Jaipal Singh was elected to represent the tribal population during the drafting of the Constitution of India and, as a member of the Tribal Sub-Committee, advocated for tribal interests in the Assembly. In 1947, internal debates emerged within the Mahasabha regarding the inclusion of non-tribal populations, since tribals accounted less than half of the Chotanagpur population, although no consensus was reached. Eventually, at its session held in Ranchi on 5 March 1949, the Mahasabha was reorganized as the Jharkhand Party, with Jaipal Singh as president and Julius Tigga as secretary. Following India's independence on 15 August 1947 and the adoption of the Constitution on 26 November 1949, which provided reserved political representation in tribal-concentrated regions, the Jharkhand Party was formally launched to the public on 1 January 1950 in Jamshedpur, shifting from a tribal-centric organization to a broader regional movement advocating for a separate Jharkhand state.

Post-Independence

The Jharkhand Party participated in the 1952 election and won 34 seats in the Bihar Legislative Assembly and become the main opposition party. In 1957 and 1962 Legislative Assembly election, the winning candidates of the party reduced to 31 and 20 in subsequent elections.

Jaipal Singh was disappointed by the declining popularity of his party and rejection of its demand for a separate Jharkhand state. In 1963 the Jharkhand Party merged with Indian National Congress. The merger was quite unpopular within the party ranks, and a number of splinter groups were formed, including the All India Jharkhand Party, the Hul Jharkhand Party, and Veer Birsa Dal.

In 1967, N.E. Horo became an MLA of the Jharkhand Party from Kolibera by election.

In 1971, the Jharkhand Party was reorganized by Bagun Sumrai, who was elected president. Horo became general secretary of the party.

In 1975, N.E. Horo was elected president of the party and Noren Hansda was elected general secretary.

In 1990, N.E. Horo was elected president, working president Lal Ranvijay Nath Sahdeo, Ashok Bhagat General Secretary in byniel conference.

On 8 January 2009, Jharkhand Party candidate Raja Peter defeated sitting Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Shibu Soren by over 9,000 votes in presidency of Anosh Ekka and Shri Ashok Kumar Bhagat-Principal General Secretary.

Splinter groups

The Jharkhand Party was fragmented into several splinter groups, including more then nine during 1967–1972, after its merger into the Indian National Congress.

Electoral performance

Legislative Assembly election results

Working committee

List of presidents

References

Footnotes

Sources

References

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16. (2021). "Handbook of Tribal Politics in India". SAGE Publications Pvt Ltd.
17. "Statistical Report on General Election, 1952 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar". Election Commission of India.
18. "Statistical Report on General Election, 1957 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar". Election Commission of India.
19. "Statistical Report on General Election, 1962 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar". Election Commission of India.
20. "Statistical Report on General Election, 1972 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar". Election Commission of India.
21. "Statistical Report on General Election, 1977 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar". Election Commission of India.