ECSAS 2023 – Turin 26-29 July

Abua Dishom, Abua Raaj: Religion, Politics, and Demand for Sarna Code in Jharkhand

Presenter

Tank Nandini - National Institute of Technology, Rourkela, Humanities and Social Sciences, Rourkela, India

Panel

42 – Changing Contours of Legitimacy and Governance in India

Abstract

 Public mobilization of religious communities to acquire a political space has been a heated discussion among scholars worldwide. Research shows a long history of religious communities participating in political movements. Especially, in a democratic nation-state, the agitated religious groups collectively participate against injustice, frustration, threat, or inequality by the elite, state authority, or other dominant religious groups.

In India, the debate on the recognition and protection of religious identity has been reduced to a discourse of minority versus majority. Despite the prominent role religion has played in inspiring political activity at different times, in contemporary research on ‘tribal’ identity, surprisingly, religious myths have been given inadequate attention. The mobilization of religious communities to acquire a political space has become increasingly common in democratic nation-states. Individual, as well as group-based participation in political protest motivated by fear, threat, grievances, defense, available resources, and opportunities, are seen as legitimate reasons behind the political activity.

The study focuses on the ongoing protest for the recognition of tribal religion, political space, and ideology stimulated by the threat on their myths, traditions, and religious identity. Moreover, social media played a crucial role in informing, mobilizing, and inciting a feeling of collective group identity.