Explained: Why People Are Protesting Over Bhojpuri And Maghi In Jharkhand

Several Jharkhand districts are witnessing protests against the inclusion of Bhojpuri and Magahi as 'regional languages' in district level competitive examinations, amid a greater undercurrent of rumblings about the state's domicile policy.

Hundreds of people marched against the government in the east-central districts of Bokaro and Dhanbad, with the protests expanding to Giridih and Ranchi.

What's behind the protests?

According to The Indian Express protests erupted after the Kharkhand Personnel of Administrative Reforms and Rajbhasha Department issued a notification allowing Magahi, Bhojpuri, and Angika, among other regional languages, to be included in the district-level selection process through exams conducted by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission (JSSC) on December 23, 2021.

BCCL

The notice only applies to district-level appointments and not to the state-wide selection process. As of currently, no vacancies have been advertised in response to the announcement.

The introduction of Bhojpuri and Magahi was viewed as an infringement on the rights of Adivasis and Moolvasis by a substantial number of people in Bokaro and Dhanbad. Despite the lack of data on the number of people who speak the languages in question, anecdotal evidence suggested that the population speaking the languages in question was small.

The protestors further claim that because just a small percentage of the population speaks the two languages, their participation in the employment selection process is unjustified.

The Congress and the ruling Jharkahnd Mukti Morcha have steered aside from the subject thus far. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has also been silent on the matter.

Who is protesting?

Over 50 protest gatherings have been organised in the last several days by the Jharkhandi Bhasha Sangharsh Samiti, a 'apolitical' Adivasi and Moolvasi organisation.

According to Tirith Nath Akash, the Samiti's spokesperson, the rallies were organised to put pressure on the government to prevent Bhojpuri and Magahi from being included in the districts of Bokaro and Dhanbad.

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In the meantime, the state's domicile policy has long been a source of contention.

In contrast to the present date of 1985, the protestors demand that the cutoff date be established 1932 when examining proof of land records for the state's domicile policy. For a long time, this has been a divisive issue.

Following the formation of Jharkhand in 2000, the first Chief Minister, Babulal Marandi, believed it was vital to identify a 'Jharkhandi,' as it would aid in the distribution of advantages such as government jobs to local residents. Marandi, on the other hand, resigned in 2003 as a result of the controversy.

The current JMM administration has constituted a cabinet sub-committee to re-define who is considered a domicile resident. In 2016, the government of former Chief Minister Raghubar Das issued a "relaxed domicile policy" that allowed employment over the previous 30 years as a category, thereby putting the cut-off year at 1985.

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