The curious battle for Parasnath hill in Jharkhand

When British botanist and explorer Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker first visited the eastern end of the Chota Nagpur plateau in 1848, this is how he described Parasnath hill: “It is a remarkably handsome mountain, sufficiently lofty to be imposing, rising out of an elevated country, the slope of which, upward to the base of the mountain, though imperceptible, is really considerable, and it is surrounded by lesser hills of just sufficient elevation to set it off.”

Parasnath hill is considered sacred by two communities that, ironically, differ sharply in diet and customs. The Adivasis, who comprise 26 per cent of the population of Jharkhand as per Census 2011, worship the hill as Marang Buru (supreme deity). For the Jains, Sammed Shikhar, one of their most important pilgrimage sites, is located in this hill.

Parasnath hill is today caught in a political storm, with both the Adivasis and the Jains staking exclusive claims over it. While the Jain protests subsided earlier in January after government assurances, Adivasi counter-protests have erupted. In the wake of this controversy, observers find it difficult to decipher if the real reason for the dispute is related to faith, customary rights, business, or politics.

It was in August 2019 that the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) designated the hill an eco-sensitive zone, noting that the area had tremendous potential for eco-tourism. Earlier, in April 2015, the then Jharkhand Chief Minister and BJP leader Raghubar Das launched a “Parasnath Hill Development Plan” to boost tourism in the Shikharji hills. According to the plan, a helipad (similar to the one in the Vaishnodevi shrine in Jammu) was to be constructed on Parasnath hill. A theme park, tourism reception centre, car parking area, and a bus station in nearby Madhuban town were also proposed.

Taking this a step further, in February 2019, the current Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal State government notified the Parasnath area as a tourist destination.

Jain protests

But it was only this year that members of the Jain community began demonstrations in New Delhi, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra, protesting the proposed development of the site as a tourism hub. On January 3, Sugyeyasagar Maharaj, a septuagenarian Jain priest who was on hunger strike to protest against the development plan, passed away in Jaipur.

The Union government saw an opening here and responded positively to the Jain protests, and some Jain leaders were quick to thank the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the RSS for supporting their cause. The Union government modified its 2019 notification and classified the area as an eco-sensitive zone (ESZ).

The MoEFCC issued a statement on January 5. Referring to a meeting with representatives of the Jain community, it directed the State government to strictly enforce the relevant provisions of the Management Plan of the Parasnath Wildlife Sanctuary. It stated: “The plan specifically prohibits damage to flora or fauna; coming with pet animals; playing loud music or use loudspeakers; defiling sites of religious and cultural significance such as, sacred monuments, lakes, rocks, caves, and shrines; and sale of liquor, drugs, and other intoxicants, etc; unauthorised camping and trekking, etc. on the Parasnath Hill… Declaration of ESZ is in fact to restrict or regulate activities surrounding the sanctuary and, therefore, outside its boundary.”

It added: “The ministry recognises the established fact that Sammed Shikharji Parvat Kshetra is a sacred Jain religious place not only for the Jain community but for the entire country, and the Ministry is committed to maintain its sanctity.”

The MoEFCC directed the State government to appoint two members from the Jain community and one member from the local tribal community as Permanent Invitees to the committee constituted by the Central government for monitoring the provisions of the ESZ notification under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

Subsequently, Chief Minister Hemant Soren tweeted: “... I have written a letter to [Union Environment Minister] Bhupender Yadav after having received the applications from the Jain community members, urging him to take appropriate action to maintain the sanctity of Sammed Shikhar at Parasnath.”

The Adivasi claim

While the Jain population in Jharkhand is almost negligible, Jains from all over India and abroad visit the hill shrine every year. Jain priests have said that they have no conflict with the Adivasis, as the community is dependent on them for the pilgrimage. But the assurances given to assuage the Jain community are being seen by the Adivasis as an official recognition of Marang Buru as a Jain religious site.

The Adivasi habitations at the foothills remain deprived of basic infrastructure and amenities such as drinking water and electricity. According to prominent Adivasi activist Gladson Dungdung, the State and the Union governments’ surrender before the Jains implies an official endorsement of the Jain code of conduct in the hills. Jains claim that of their 24 Tirthankaras (religious saints), 20 attained nirvana in these hills. “The aboriginal Santhals say that Jain saints might have attained moksha here but it can’t be a justification for their sole claim over these hills,” Dungdung told Frontline, adding, “False claims are being made that the Santhals were brought here by the Britishers to work in the local coal mines.” Stressing that Santhals are not asking Jains to leave the place, he said: “The native Adivasi people want basic amenities, job opportunities, and economic development.”

Jharkhand was carved out of southern Bihar in 2000. The history of the Parasnath dispute can be traced in the Bihar District Gazetteers Hazaribagh, 1957. According to a version in this compendium, the Jains objected to the construction of a sanatorium for British troops in Parasnath hill, complaining that its sanctity would be violated. “Accordingly, the idea of establishment of sanatorium was abandoned not merely because of confined space and absence of water but in respect of the sentiments of the Jains and the building which was constructed was later utilised as a dak bungalow,” it stated.

It further noted that Parasnath hill is worshipped as “Marang Buru” by the Santhals of Hazaribagh, Manbhum, Bankura, and Santhal Parganas. Each year, the Santhals assemble on the full moon in the month of Baisakh to celebrate a religious hunt for three days. This entry in the record-of-rights prepared in 1911 was challenged by the Shwetambar Jains, but the suit was dismissed by the then Judicial Commissioner and later by the High Court. When the matter was taken up with the Privy Council, it upheld the customary rights of the Santhals to hunt on Parasnath hill.

The two dominant sects of Jainism—Shwetambar and Digambar—have been caught in a legal tangle over nirvan bhoomi (salvation land) for the last 87 years. The Patna High Court rejected the exclusive ownership claims and narrow sectarian views within the community. “The way the cases are being fought, it can be found that such fighting is not for religious faith but for egos,” Justice Prasun Kumar Deb noted in his 132-page judgment, maintaining that the shrine belongs to the Jain community as a whole. The judgment stated that Parasnath hill stands vested to the State of Bihar under the Bihar Land Reforms Act. Currently the matter is pending before the Supreme Court.

Adivasis up in arms

On December 28, 2022, the Adivasis staged a protest at Madhuban in Giridih district after a group of students were stopped by Jain pilgrims from climbing the hill. Although the pilgrims were detained for some hours, the local administration deputed security personnel, including CRPF jawans, at the three entry points to the hill shrine. Patrolling was under way to ensure that meat, alcohol, and tobacco were not consumed around Parasnath hill. The Adivasis alleged that the previous week, too, non-Jain visitors from Ranchi and Dhanbad were stopped from climbing the hills. An official of the Jain Shwetambar Society rubbished these claims in the media, saying there were no restrictions on people from entering the temple.

Following his meeting with members of the Jain community, Deputy Commissioner, Giridih, Naman Priyesh Lakra, directed the district officials on December 22, 2022, to strictly enforce the ban on meat and alcohol in the area, but this has irked the Adivasis, who see it as a violation of their customary rights. Phone calls and a message to the Deputy Commissioner did not elicit any response.

The Adivasis have risen in counter-protest, with a movement built around the slogan “Free Parasnath hill from the clutches of the Jains”, linking the issue with a larger narrative around protection of their jal jangal jameen (water, forest, land). Their apprehensions and resentment are rooted in their continued dispossession of land and shrines. In the past few decades, for instance, as Dungdung said, “The Devdi temple and Pahadi temple in Ranchi, and Rajrappa temple in Ramgarh have been taken over by the Hindu religion. There are various other sarna sthals (places of tribal worship) in the State that are being appropriated.”

Incidentally, in July 2020, Adivasi organisations protested when the VHP planned to carry soil from the sarna sthals to Ayodhya for use in the construction of the Ram temple. In 2020, the Jharkhand Assembly passed a unanimous resolution and sent it to the Governor, asking the Union government to introduce Sarna as an enumerated religion in Census 2021. The resolution reflected a long-standing demand by the tribes in Jharkhand and neighbouring States who are worshippers of nature and do not identify with any religion.

On January 10, agitated Adivasis from across Jharkhand marched to Jug Jater Than, their place of worship at the foothills of the range, to demand that the hill be officially declared a pilgrimage centre for the Adivasis. Armed with traditional weapons, they burnt the effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Hemant Soren, and JMM MLA Sudivya Kumar. Sikander Hembrom, convener of Parasnath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, said: “The hill is sacred for us since ages. The place must be declared a tribal pilgrimage centre as it was in the 1911 and 1956 gazette notifications.”

The Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan (ASA), headed by Salkhan Murmu, a two-time former BJP MP, has decided to carry out a protest rally across five States from January 17 to free “Parasnath Hill from the Jains”. The rally is aimed at mounting pressure on the government to include the Sarna religious code in the Census besides the official recognition of the rights of the Adivasis on forests, hills, and mountains, and to grant Scheduled Tribe status to the Kurmi community. It will conclude at Morabadi Ground in Ranchi on February 11. The ASA, in association with the PBSS, will observe a day’s fast at the birthplace of Adivasi icon Birsa Munda in Ulihatu village in Khunti district on January 30.

Lobin Hembram, a rebel JMM MLA elected five times from Borio constituency, is another prominent face of the Adivasi agitation. Under the banner of his recently founded Jharkhand Bachao Morcha (JBM), he has been mobilising Adivasis. He led the January 10 protest rally at Parasnath. Threatening a large-scale agitation, Hembram gave an ultimatum to the State government to declare Parasnath hill as a Marang Buru religious site by January 25.

According to observers, Hembram has an axe to grind because he was denied a ministerial berth in the State government. In public rallies, he has been accusing Hemant Soren of being surrounded by the anti-Adivasi people from Bihar.

Addressing a protest rally, he said: “Despite having a government headed by a tribal leader in a tribal State, Santhal religious shrine Marang Buru in Parasnath is being hijacked by the Jains. We will not let this happen. The government must issue a notification on Marang Buru.” He added that before assuming power, Hemant Soren had made a lot of promises to the tribal people, which remain unfulfilled and claimed that he was not being allowed to speak inside the State Assembly.

Hembram has also continuously targeted the government over the khatiyan (land records) policy of 1932, illegal mining, and the liquor policy, among other issues. The Adivasi protests have offered the opposition fresh ammunition to attack the Hemant Soren government.

Fodder to the mill

Though the Adivasi population is the JMM’s vote base, the party is said to be largely funded by Marwari Jains. According to Dungdung, “While the Hemant Soren government has taken some pro-people policy decisions, right-wing forces want to discredit the JMM government and bring the BJP back to power.” The next Assembly election is likely to be held in November-December 2024.

In 2016, when a BJP-led coalition was in power in Jharkhand, it brought in the controversial Jharkhand Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy and proposed to create a land bank across 20 lakh acres. Next year, it decided to amend the Chota Nagpur Tenancy Act and the Santhal Pargana Tenancy Act, British era laws that restrict the sale and transfer of Adivasi land to non-Adivasis. More than 10,000 people who protested against it were booked under the sedition law. “These steps left the tribal community rattled. The BJP lost the 2019 State Assembly election,” said Dungdung, adding, “Now an effort is being made to create a public perception that the JMM stands with the Jains. BJP has its core vote bank. If any third party emerges as a tribal vote-cutter, it will ultimately help the BJP come to power again.”

Salkhan Murmu, the ASA chief, is seen to be fighting the BJP’s proxy fight against the present coalition government. In media interviews and public rallies, Murmu makes no bones about his revulsion for Christian missionaries and his attachment to the BJP. Though he disapproves of the policies of the previous BJP-led government, Murmu has declared, “I am trying to influence and inspire the BJP to come [to power] but don’t strangulate the tribals just like the previous Raghubar Das government did, leaving the tribals traumatised. My effort is to replace the UPA with the NDA here.” Nor does Murmu hide his aspirations to become the next Chief Minister. According to Jharkhand observers, if Lobin Hembram and Salkhan Murmu are successful in weaning Adivasis off the JMM, it could tilt the equation in favour of the BJP.

As the turmoil around Parasnath hill rages on, Professor Mithilesh Kumar Singh, who teaches Hindi at Vinoba Bhave University, Hazaribagh, said, “The government should not see religious places as sources of revenue generation. The current problem can be resolved through mutual dialogue between the Jain community and the Adivasi community. They have coexisted amicably since ages.”

Jharkhand Independent MLA Saryu Roy said that the State and Central governments must intervene without further delay. “After the Jain assertion that Parasnath hill is their sacred place, the local population fears that the Jains may get sole right over the area and harm their interests,” Roy told Frontline, adding that “the problem lies in the fact that we are talking about the Parasnath hills in vague terms”. Stressing on the need to end ambiguities, Roy suggested, “The government can declare it a Jain pilgrimage site but the area where activities that hurt their sentiments must be prohibited has to be defined and demarcated. There are 30-35 villages in the area; the interest of the [Adivasi] villagers and their customary rights also need to be protected. We can’t stop them from conducting animal sacrifice rituals. There is an ESZ and a wildlife sanctuary. These areas, too, need to be clearly defined.”

The Crux

• Parasnath hill in Jharkand is caught in a political storm, with Adivasis and Jains (both of whom worship it as sacred) staking exclusive claims over it.
• In January, members of the Jain community held protest demonstrations across the country against the proposed development of Parasnath hill as a tourism hub.
• Following this, the Union government classified the area as an eco-sensitive zone and directed the State government to take appropriate action to maintain the sanctity of Sammed Shikhar (the Jain pilgrim centre) at Parasnath.
• Rising in counter-protest, the Adivasis from across Jharkhand marched on January 10 to Jug Jater Than, their place of worship at the Parasnath foothills, to demand that the hill be officially declared a pilgrimage centre for the Adivasis.
• The Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan, headed by Salkhan Murmu, a two-time former BJP MP, carried out a protest rally across five States from January 17 to free “Parasnath Hill from the Jains”. It will conclude at Morabadi Ground in Ranchi on February 11.