4 days ago
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A delegation of the Janjatiya Suraksha Manch (JSM) has submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu, seeking changes to the law model governing Scheduled Tribe (ST) presumption for tribals who person to different religions. The JSM is simply a tribal rights assemblage affiliated with the RSS-backed Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram.
The organisation called for “legal and law safeguards” to support the taste individuality and rights of tribal communities. Its demands see a statutory explanation of “Scheduled Tribe” based connected the criteria laid down by the Lokur Committee, amendments oregon clarifications to the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, and measures to sphere tribal customs and traditions.
Addressing a property league successful Delhi connected Friday (May 29, 2026), JSM office-bearers reiterated the organisation’s long-standing request that tribals who had “abandoned accepted tribal faith, customs and mode of beingness upon conversion” should not proceed to person preservation benefits meant for Scheduled Tribes.
Conversion has increased
Satyendra Singh, president of the VKA, said the memorandum had been submitted to some the Prime Minister and the President. “We received an assurance that justness would beryllium done,” helium said. Mr. Singh alleged that spiritual conversions among tribal communities had accrued importantly and described the inclination arsenic posing societal and nationalist challenges.
According to JSM representatives, of India’s tribal colonisation of astir 12 crore recorded successful the 2011 Census, an estimated 1.5 crore to 2 crore radical had converted to Christianity.
Rajkishor Hansda, nationalist co-convenor of the JSM, said discussions with the Prime Minister focused connected “pressing ineligible and law issues concerning tribal welfare”.
Sources successful the organisation said the delegation sought a proviso akin to that applicable to Scheduled Castes, nether which a tribal idiosyncratic who adopts different religion aft abandoning accepted tribal practices would cease to beryllium recognised arsenic subordinate of a Scheduled Tribe.
Call for sheet study
The organisation claimed that specified a presumption had earlier been recommended by the Joint Parliamentary Committee successful 1969 and had besides recovered enactment successful respective Supreme Court judgments. It further urged the authorities to notation the contented to the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) for examination.
The organisation maintained that its demands were not directed against immoderate religion. It said that if the authorities intended to widen payment enactment to economically weaker converts, it could bash truthful done a abstracted mechanics alternatively than done quotas reserved for Scheduled Tribes.
The delegation besides raised concerns regarding the projected Great Nicobar Infrastructure Project successful the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Mr. Singh said that portion the task held strategical importance, including for maritime information successful the Indian Ocean region, the authorities should consult section communities apt to beryllium affected and prosecute improvement successful dialog with residents.
