Will it be Bhil Pradesh?

Will it be Bhil Pradesh?

A political party based in Gujarat, the Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP), envisions Bhil Pradesh as a separate state with 39 districts spread over four states: 16 in Gujarat, 10 in Rajasthan, seven in Madhya Pradesh, and six in Maharashtra.

Recently, the demand for a “Bhil Pradesh,” a separate and independent state for tribal people in western India, has resurfaced. What is the basis for this demand, and who is promoting it?

According to BTP Rajasthan president Dr. Velaram Ghogra, social reformer, and spiritual leader Govind Guru first raised the issue of a separate state for tribals in 1913 after the Mangarh massacre. On November 17, 1913, hundreds of Bhil tribals were slaughtered by British forces in the hills of Mangarh, on the Rajasthan-Gujarat boundary, six years before Jallianwalla Bagh. This massacre is sometimes referred to as the “Adivasi Jallianwala.”

Ghogra said the demand for Bhil Pradesh was raised repeatedly after independence. It was introduced and amplified by, among others, Congress MP Somjibhai Damor; former Ratlam MP Dileep Singh Bhuria, also of the Congress; and former CPI member of the Rajasthan Assembly Meghraj Tawar.

The Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP), a Gujarat-based political party, believes Bhil Pradesh should be a separate state composed of 39 districts spread across four states: 16 in Gujarat, 10 in Rajasthan, seven in Madhya Pradesh, and six in Maharashtra. “Earlier, the Dungarpur, Banswara, Udaipur region in Rajasthan and Gujarat, MP, etc., were part of one entity,” Ghogra said. The tribal majority regions were divided by the political parties after independence so that the tribals could not organize or unite.”

Over the decades, several Union governments passed various “laws, benefits, schemes, and committee reports” to tribals, but they were slowly implemented.

“Various measures, including the Fifth Schedule under Article 244(1) of the Constitution, were taken to protect tribal interests, but most were mere assurances by the ruling party, whether the Congress or the BJP,” he said.

Ghogra referred to the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 as an example. “The law passed in 1996, the Rajasthan government adopted it in 1999, and the rules were released in 2011.” 

 

Ashik Gehlot had said that Congress would not let the tribals down in the upcoming Chintan Shivir in Udaipur. “But there was always “the next time,” Ghogra said – “75 years have passed, and yet it’s still the next time. Since Independence, parties have not seen tribals beyond vote bank politics.”

Based on the Rajasthan Zila Parishad election results in December 2020, one can gauge the nervousness of Congress and BJP about the BTP. BJP and ZP members of the ruling Congress teamed up to defeat the BTP-backed Zila Pramukh candidate at Dungarpur in Rajasthan. Independents backed by the BTP won 13 of the 27 seats in Dungarpur Zila Parishad, while the BJP and Congress won 8 and 6 seats, respectively.

Among the main goals of the Bhil Pradesh Tactical Party, which was formed in 2017 in Gujarat, is creating a separate state. Gogra has been directly involved with the demand for over a decade. Gatherings and meetings are routinely held to mobilize tribal members and spread awareness.

Both the Congress and BJP have lost the trust of tribal youth, Ghogra said. He explained, “With the spread of social media, it’s easier than ever to read up on things and verify them on your own.”. “When we consider how we have fared for 75 years, we must have our own separate Bhil Pradesh.”.

BTP’s first demand is that Congress send a tribal to the Upper House ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections. ” In my village Paldeval in Dungarpur, 25 years after the incident, people still do not know that there is a law. The legislators and ministers of the BJP and the Congress lack adequate legal knowledge.”

The last tribal from our region to be sent to Rajya Sabha by Congress was Dhuleshwar Meena decades ago,” Ghogra said.

Kanakmal Katara, currently the Lok Sabha MP from Banswara, was a Rajya Sabha member from the tribal belt for the BJP. 

Gyanvapi Case: what do the petitioners claim?

During the first day of the hearing, only the 27 lawyers representing the different sides, the five Hindu women petitioners, and the six respondents were allowed in the courtroom.

“We spoke for two hours about our argument. We argue that their (the petitioner’s) claims are factually contradictory and unsupported by evidence. Several legal provisions prevent them from bringing their claims. Our argument has not been concluded. We will continue our argument on May 30,” said Abhay Nath Yadav, counsel for the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid management committee.

 The Supreme Court transferred the case from the Civil Judge Senior Division to the Varanasi district court on May 20, citing the case’s complexity and sensitivity. At Thursday’s hearing on the application challenging the maintainability of the petition seeking the right to worship at Maa Shringar Gauri Sthal on the outer wall of the complex, attorneys representing the mosque described petitioners claims as “factually contradictory” without supporting evidence.

The matter is being heard by District Court judge Ajaya Krishna Vishvesha following instructions from the Supreme Court last week.

On May 30, a fast track court will also hear a petition seeking permission to worship a ‘Shivling’ found in the Gyanvapi mosque complex during a videography survey required by a local court.

Despite declining to stay proceedings before the Varanasi court, the Supreme Court asked the District Magistrate to secure the area where “Shivling” was alleged to have been found. The District Court transferred the petition to the fast-track court on Wednesday. In the petition, three Vishwa Vedic Sanatan Sangh leaders sought a ban on Muslims entering the Gyanvapi complex and handing over the entire complex to Hindus.

These are the two news that has been a hot topic for this week, and this will continue for some more time or even longer as this religious fight is never ending but some things are meant to happen.