Observing the Birth anniversary of Bhagwan Birsa Munda as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Divas’

By: Dr. Aheibam Koireng Singh
Movements and uprisings by a number of tribal communities marked with immense valor and supreme sacrifice also have a significant contribution in India’s freedom struggle. Birsa Munda (b. 15 November, 1875 – d. 9 June, 1900), more popularly known reverently with the affix ‘Bhagwan’ among his followers across the country was one of the most prominent leader who led such movement and uprising. He was a folk hero and a tribal freedom fighter hailing from the Munda tribe. He had a very glorious and short life as he died at the young age of 25.
Himself being a very far-sighted nationalist, he was quite aware of the evil designs of the British colonial rule and the transgression of the missionaries sponsored by them to convert tribals to Christianity by nullifying the native culture and belief systems of the tribal communities. To counter such evil design, he founded the ‘Birsait’ faith’ by syncretizing the belief systems of their tribal communities with Hinduism. Many tribal communities got indoctrinated and became followers of Birsait faith and it became a harbinger of socio-religious reform as it resisted the conversion activities of the British colonial rulers. And also he preached for abandoning the evil practice of sorcery and witchcraft and urged upon his followers to practice cleanliness in their village, to have faith in God, observe a code of conduct and to give up the habit of intoxicant drinks.
Also known as Dharti Aaba (Father of Earth), he with his famous slogan, ‘let the kingdom of the (British) queen be ended, let our kingdom be established’ mobilized and spearheaded the Munda Rebellion in the south of Ranchi in 1899-1900 which is one of the most important tribal movements. The Munda rebellion was directed against the exploitation carried out by the colonial British Raj. He attributed the land policies of the British which turn the tribals into bonded labourers and impoverished them to abject poverty and the activities of the Christian missionaries which had devastating consequences in their traditional land system and traditional native culture as responsible for the misery the Mundas were suffering. He exhorted his people to realize the importance of owning their land and asserting their right upon them. This movement which aimed at overthrowing and driving out the British rule and established a native self-rule came to be called as the ‘Ulgulan’ or the ‘Great Tumult’. The movement targeted the symbols of European power and raised the white flag as a symbol of native self-rule, ‘Birsa Raj’. His movement compelled the British colonial administrators to introduce laws protecting the land rights of the tribals as the colonial British government passed the act in 1908 which restricted the passing of land from the tribal people to non-tribals. He urged his followers to recover their glorious past. His movement was a very significant one also because it proved that the tribal communities also had the potential to organize among themselves to protest against injustice and express their anger against colonial rule. As his movement gained momentum, he was arrested by the British colonial administration in 1895 and put behind bars for two years by convicting him on charges of rioting. When Birsa was released in 1897 he began touring the villages to gather support. In 1899, he again resumed his armed struggle along with the people. The colonial British government again caught him in February 3, 1900 from Jamkopai forest, Chakradharpur. Birsa Munda breathed his last on 09 June 1900 under mysterious circumstances at the Ranchi jail while he was in captivity. Many speculated that he had been poisoned to death though jail authorities claimed Cholera as the reason for his death. In fact, even in his death, he exposed the wickedness and cruelties of the British colonial rule towards their native Indian subjects.
His brief illustrious life as a true nationalist and his eventual martyrdom inspired and motivated Indians all over the country by instilling a supreme sense of nationalism with his immense valour and utmost sacrifice. He made profound contributions in restoring national pride by uniting the tribal communities and emancipating them from their political and cultural bondage due to British colonial rule. The Union Cabinet (of India), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had on 10 November 2021, approved the declaration of 15th November, i.e. the birth day of Birsa Munda as ‘Janjatiya Gaurav Divas’ in dedication to the memory of brave tribal freedom fighters so that coming generations could know about their sacrifices for the country. This is indeed a significant step in the right direction as it acknowledges the glorious history and cultural heritage of tribal communities and would also recognize the hard work of the tribals for preservation of pristine cultural heritage and promotion of Indian values of courage, generosity and national pride. It would surely result to greater awareness among the public at large about the contribution made by the tribal heroes in India’s freedom struggle.
(The writer is a Project Officer, Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC), Manipur University (MU).)