Tribal organisations across Jharkhand have announced a large-scale protest against demands by the Kurmi community for inclusion in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) list.
The main demonstration — billed as the “Hunkar Rally” — is scheduled for 17 October at Dhurwa Prabhat Tara Ground, Ranchi, and is expected to draw thousands of Sarna followers and tribal delegates from across the state.
Tribal leader Sanjay Pahan, speaking at a Raji Padaha Sarna prayer meeting at Desavali Sarna Sthal in Harmu, described the mobilisation as essential to safeguarding tribal identity and rights.
“This is not merely a struggle over resources such as water, forests or land,” Pahan told reporters. “It is a fight to protect our tribal identity and existence.”
Pahan argued that the Kurmi community is mainly agrarian and does not share the cultural and social characteristics that, he said, define indigenous tribal groups.
He characterised the Kurmi demand for ST status as politically motivated and warned that granting it would amount to an assault on tribal rights and traditions.
Posters and preparations for the rally have emphasised cultural symbols; Pahan highlighted the red sari worn by tribal women as “a symbol of struggle and unity” that will be prominent during the protest.
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Echoing Pahan, Ravi Tigga, State President of the Jharkhand Adivasi Sangathan, called the Dhurwa event historic. “Sarna followers will join from every corner of the state,” Tigga said.
He added that tribal organisations would not allow “the geographical, cultural and historical identity of tribal society to be diluted.” He stressed that the rally is intended to be peaceful but issued a firm warning: “Any attack or conspiracy against tribal rights will not be tolerated.”
The announcement follows a massive gathering in Khunti on Wednesday — the ‘Pratikar Aakrosh Rally’ — which organisers said drew over 50,000 people from multiple blocks and villages.
The Tribal Coordination Committee, along with several tribal and social bodies, described that turnout as historic and reiterated opposition to including Kudmi/Kurmi communities in the ST list.
The protesters’ assertions and the scale of mobilisation underscore deep anxieties among tribal groups about identity, land rights and political representation. Authorities and political stakeholders have not yet provided an official response to the protest organisers’ claims.
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