Elegance Hansda’s husband has been called a Bangladeshi infiltrator and a Rohingya Muslim. Responding to these allegations, the 36-year-old says, “There are people who claim that Muslim Bangladeshis marry tribal women and usurp their land. Well, it is a complete lie. Not only do tribal women not get any land, even the expectation that our parents will give us some jewellery is not always met.” 

The claim has been made by Nishikant Dubey, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Godda, among others. On July 25, Dubey alleged in Parliament that Bangladeshi infiltrators had lured and married 100 tribal women heads in the Santhal Pargana and grabbed their land. He did not present any evidence to support his allegations.

A similar assertion was made by BJP leader and member of National Commission for Scheduled Tribes Asha Lakra on July 28, in which she said that ten tribal women representatives (mukhiyas, panchayat samiti members, and zila parishad chairpersons) of nine panchayats in the Sahibganj district of the Santhal Pargana were married to Bangladeshi infiltrators and Rohingya Muslims. According to both Dubey and Lakra, Muslim infiltrators from Bangladesh have been marrying tribal women and propping them up as mukhiyas.

Hansda is the mukhiya of Kadma, one of the nine panchayats in question. Denying all allegations, she submits that she married Jainul Ansari of the same village 18 years ago of her own will, and that neither of them even know about the post of the mukhiya at the time. Ever since the story of Bangladeshi infiltration broke, it has been vitiating the atmosphere of her village.

Interestingly, Hansda's sister Sheela too is married to a non-tribal – in her case, a Hindu – but according to Elegance, her sister and her husband are never targeted.

According to a media report, Lakra's claim about the husbands of the ten tribal women representatives being Bangladeshi Rohingya Muslims is incorrect. Of the ten representatives identified by Lakra, three have tribal husbands and one is married to a Hindu.

Among the remaining six, Selina Hansda, mukhiya of the Barhet Panchayat, is married to Mohammad Azad, who was also accused of being a Bangladeshi infiltrator. A few days ago, 31-year-old Selina was told to report to the local police station along with her house papers. She says, "It is my constitutional right to decide whom I marry. It is true that my husband was asked to produce his papers. Well, he has the documents from 1932, and also from 1832. They (the BJP government during its 2014-19 term) held power for five long years. Why didn't they conduct this investigation then? They are raking this up now only because of the elections."

The union government has a different take from the party.

Home Minister Amit Shah has amplified the claims of Dubey and Lakra by introducing the terminology of land and love jihad. However, according to BJP leader and former minister Louis Marandi, who comes from the Santhal Pargana, Hindu boys too have been marrying tribal girls, which is also resulting in the destruction of tribal culture.

Marandi is more guarded when asked her opinion on the question of Bangladeshi infiltration. She says, “Look, this is a serious issue. I cannot speak authentically, because the administrative report says one thing and we are saying another. Therefore, you should come down here and assess it. We cannot speak much about this on the phone.”

It has long been the position of the BJP that infiltration by Bangladeshi and Rohingya Muslims has brought about a demographic change in the Santhal Pargana. But the affidavit filed by the Government of India in the Jharkhand High court on September 12 on the order issued by the court while hearing a petition regarding this matter raises some questions. Because according to reports, no involvement of any Bangladeshi infiltrators has been established in any land dispute on the ground.

Despite this, the party has chosen to project Bangladeshi infiltration as the core issue in the upcoming state Assembly elections. During an election rally held on September 20, Home Minister Shah reiterated that if the BJP comes into power, it will evict every single Bangladeshi and Rohingya from Jharkhand.

Political experts believe that the BJP is deploying a different strategy this time around for the forthcoming elections in Jharkhand. Part of the change is putting Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in charge of these elections. In the last assembly elections, the party managed to win only two of the 28 tribal reserved seats in the state; therefore, its focus is squarely on tribal voters and seats.

In a two-pronged strategy, the party is harping on the issue of delisting (which entails the removal of tribal converts to Christianity or other religions from the list of scheduled tribes) in Jharkhand, just as it did in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, while Sarma is mobilising around the issue of Bangladeshi infiltration.

Are Muslims the BJP’s target?

A journalist from Assam tells us on condition of anonymity about how Sarma changed the narrative of Bangladeshi infiltration in Assam. Infiltration from Bangladesh was an issue in the state even during the Congress rule, but back then, the demand was the expulsion of illegal Bangladeshis of all castes and religions. The BJP narrowed it along sectarian lines by limiting it to Muslims: it established Muslims as a synonym of infiltrators. Sarma has played an important role in setting this narrative and it has brought his party electoral success.

The journalist believes that the BJP under Sarma is now setting the same narrative in the Santhals of Jharkhand. The Santhal Pargana is an area of Jharkhand that has large populations of both Muslims and tribals. Encompassing the districts of Sahibganj, Pakur, Godda, Deoghar, Jamtara, and Dumka, it is also deemed the stronghold of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, senior partner in the coalition that currently holds power.

Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha activist Siraj Dutta too believes that the issue of Bangladeshi infiltration is an attempt by the BJP to win some tribal votes and seats by sowing seeds of dissension among the tribals and creating a conflict between them and the Muslims. The party has also been targeting Muslims in Kolhan on the pretext of countering Bangladeshi infiltration.

What lies behind the decline in tribal demography?

The affidavit filed by the Union Government in the High Court presents no proof of Bangladeshi infiltration, but a report states that infiltration has taken place here since Independence and the demography of the Santhal Pargana has changed. It states further that between 1991 and 2011, the Muslim population has increased in the Santhal Pargana by 13 per cent, and in Sahibganj and Pakur by 35 per cent. In contrast, the tribal population in the Santhal Pargana has decreased rapidly from 1951 to 2011. It has plummeted from 44 per cent to 28 per cent, which is said to be a very serious matter.

The Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha’s survey report states that a major decline of tribal population in the Santhal Pargana occurred between 1991 and 2011. The Mahasabha lists several reasons for this, including a large influx of Hindus and Muslims from the surrounding states and districts into the Santhal Pargana. Secondly, the tribals here have a lower rate of population growth than other communities. Thirdly, their mortality rate is high due to poor health facilities. Another significant factor is the outward migration of tribals in search of employment.

According to the affidavit of the Government of India, apart from conversion, the reasons stated by the Mahasabha could also be behind the decline in the tribal population.

(Translated by Kaushika Draavid)