RSS affiliate holds event for tribal communities

The event comes at a time when the BJP is also expanding its tribal outreach across India through various programmes. Photo Credits: Facebook/Akhil Bharatiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram

As part of its ongoing annual meet, the Akhil Bharatiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram, the tribal wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, on Saturday organised an event at Samalkha in Haryana to showcase various rituals performed by tribal communities.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat attended the event, which was organised to strengthen the organisation’s connection with the tribal population. It also comes ahead of the Assembly election in Jharkhand, which has a large tribal population.

The ABVKA, which works for the uplift of tribal population, announced plans to hold year-long celebrations to mark the 500th birth anniversary of Rani Durgawati, a Rajput princess who married a Gond and also fought the Mughals.

“The organisation will also hold grand celebrations for the 150th birth anniversary of Birsa Munda on November 15, which is also celebrated as Janjatiya Gaurav Divas,” Atul Jog, all-India organising secretary of ABVKA, said.

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Speaking about Saturday’s event, the ABVKA, in a statement, said that nearly 80 tribes from across the country and Nepal performed their distinct rituals in separate pandals at the camp in Samalakha, 70 km from Delhi. These rituals range from the worship of deities in visible forms (Saakar) to the veneration of the formless (Niraakar).

The event comes at a time when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is also expanding its tribal outreach across India through various programmes. The Union government earlier this week announced a package under which ₹5 lakh would be provided to tribal households and villages to turn homes into tourist homestays or to build new ones under the Tourism Ministry’s Swadesh Darshan scheme.

A senior RSS functionary said the ABVKA was working for the tribal community for decades and its events and programmes should not be linked to elections.

“We have been remembering the tribal icons from a time when people didn’t use to recognise them. Whatever events are happening in Samalkha or across the country by ABVKA has nothing to do with elections but an ongoing process to bring the tribals, who are more prone to religious conversions, to Hindu fold and ensure that those who already identify themselves as Sanatani to remain with us,” the functionary said.

The event also saw the launch of 14 books on freedom fighters from tribal communities.