How delisting is a ticking political time-bomb in northern Chhattisgarh  

With the next Assembly elections just about a year away, the drive towards delisting of converted tribals has attained great political significance in the State

During a recent visit to Chhattisgarh’s Jashpur, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel was asked about the delisting of tribals who have converted to other religions, primarily Christianity - an issue that has been festering in the State since the beginning of this year. A number of rallies have been held in Jashpur in recent months to protest against tribals, who have converted, but still avail benefits of the Scheduled Tribe provisions.

Mr. Baghel sought to put the ball in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s court, saying that the campaign for delisting was being run by the BJP and since the party was in power at the Centre, it should initiate a constitutional amendment if it meant business rather than “hold rallies in Jashpur”.

While the issue of delisting of Christian tribals in order to deny them reservation benefits has gained momentum nationally since the beginning of this year, the question assumes greater significance in a district like Jashpur that has 67 per cent tribal population, most of whom hail from the Oraon tribe and a majority of whom are converts to Christianity from several generations ago.

The issue has assumed political significance in the light of the fact that the entire northern belt of Sarguja had voted en masse for the Congress in the 2018 assembly elections, forcing the BJP to draw a blank in all the 14 seats there. With the next Assembly elections just about a year away, the drive towards delisting of converted tribals may split the 32 per cent tribal votes in the State, which is not good news for the ruling Congress party, admit its leaders privately.

Ganesh Ram Bhagat, a former State minister and the national convenor of Janjati Suraksha Manch (JSM), has emerged as the face of the delisting protests in the region. Founded in 2006, JSM is leading the delisting campaign in the country and is widely perceived to have the backing of the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS). Jashpur, a district that shares borders with Jharkhand and Odisha, is Mr. Bhagat’s home turf and hence crucial from his individual standpoint too, according to those in the BJP.

“We will not sit quietly till the demands are met. If the Christians do not follow our tribal cultures and traditions, do not worship the gods that we do, how can they be counted as tribals and keep on taking the reservation benefits?” he asks.

However, such assertions have sparked fears among the Christians, says Yakub Kujur, a former college professor and member of the Jashpur Vikas Samiti that works for the rights of the tribals and the displaced. He also says that despite the conversion, his family and other fellow Christians follow many tribal customs and traditions. In his fifties now, Mr. Kujur says that his family converted three generations ago, around 1908. The history of conversions date back even earlier, as early as the 1860s, when the Christian missionaries first came to the region.