Will bring uniform civil code to Jharkhand, exempt tribal people: Amit Shah

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will implement uniform civil code (UCC) in Jharkhand, if elected to power in the state, but will keep tribals out of its ambit, Union home minister Amit Shah announced on Sunday as he released the party’s manifesto for the upcoming state assembly elections in Ranchi.
“The Congress and the Opposition have been spreading rumours that the UCC would take away rights of the tribals. I would like to reiterate that the BJP will implement UCC in Jharkhand but keep all tribal rights and culture out of it,” he said.

“The BJP has decided to carry forward Jharkhand’s historic heritage of national security, a legacy initiated by Bhagwan Birsa Munda, by integrating the ideals of ‘Maati, Roti, aur Beti’ with respect for tribal pride,” Shah said. “It serves not just as the BJP’s manifesto, but as a declaration of the hopes and dreams of countless people in the state,” he added.
A law to restore land of tribals allegedly grabbed by Bangladeshi infiltrators, institution of a commission for rehabilitation of the people displaced due to development and mining activities and a host of welfare schemes targeting women and youth are some of the key highlights of the BJP’s Sankalp Patra.
Calling the Hemant Soren government in the state as the “most corrupt” government in the country, Shah accused the state government of harbouring Bangladeshi infiltrators who are targeting tribal women, Shah said the BJP government would identify each infiltrator and deport them besides bringing a law to restore land to the tribals.
“The Bangladeshi infiltrators are targeting tribal women and trapping them through multiple marriages and grabbing their land. The tribal culture is under threat. Once we come to power, we would identify each one of them and deport them. The state government would also bring a law to restore the land back to the tribal girls which have been grabbed by the infiltrators after marriage through gift deeds,” he said.
“The border terrain is difficult due to long forest and mountainous terrain. Infiltration has been checked in Assam since BJP came to power there. But it’s not stopping in Bengal and Assam because the state governments are not working to check it. Hemant Soren can’t run away from the responsibility. Why are the patwari and collectors not identifying and reporting the matter to the Centre. The intention is important. The high court has acknowledged this issue, issuing orders to identify, detect, and deport infiltrators, but the Jharkhand government has not responded to these directives,” Shah said.
“Once the BJP comes to power in Jharkhand, Hemant Soren will no longer be able to protect the infiltrators. The BJP will take action to identify and remove each infiltrator one by one,” he said.
Shortly after Shah’s announcement, Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren said neither the UCC nor the National Register of Citizens (NRC) will be allowed in the state. Soren said that Jharkhand would adhere only to the Chotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) and Santhal Pargana Tenancy (SPT) Acts to protect tribal culture and land rights.
Jharkhand’s 26 million voters will head to the polls across two phases on November 13 (43 seats in the eastern part of the state) and November 20 (38 seats in the western part of the state). In the Lok Sabha, the state saw four-phase elections. The mineral-rich state, which also boasts of the second-highest proportion of tribespeople in India, will see a largely bipolar battle between the ruling Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance led by the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, and the National Democratic Alliance led by the BJP.
Shah also hit out at the Soren government’s demand to release ₹1.36 lakh crore outstanding dues with the central mining PSUs against land compensation and royalty against mined major minerals in the state.
He said, “They keep taking about 1 lakh crore. I want to ask Hemant Soren, how much money did the UPA government give Jharkhand between 2004-14 and the money disbursed by the Modi government in the next ten years. He won’t reply, so I have the figures. The UPA government gave ₹84,000 crore in 10 years. In comparison, the Modi government has given ₹3.8 lakh crore in the past 10 years. This is apart from the ₹15,000 crore given for highway projects and ₹65,000 crore for rail projects.”
Shah said the BJP, if voted to power, will create 500,000 employment opportunities, including 287,000 government jobs, in Jharkhand.
“The youth, suffering from unemployment and paper leaks, are looking toward the Bharatiya Janata Party with hope. The people of Jharkhand are ready to select a government that prioritises the welfare of the poor rather than one that siphons off funds meant for their development into the pockets of family and friends,” he said.
The party also promised allowances to women and youngsters besides free education to girls from economically weaker section. According to the manifesto, ₹2,100 per month will be given to all women in the state under the Gogo Didi yojana. It also promised LPG cylinders at ₹500 all families and two free refills every year.
The party has promised ₹2,000 per month allowance to graduate and post graduate jobs-seekers for a duration of two years. It has also promised registration of property up to ₹50 lakh in the name of women against stamp duty of Re 1.
Referring to the controversy over freebies announced ahead of elections, Shah said the BJP was doing it after factoring in fiscal prudence, unlike the Congress governments who have failed to implement the electoral promises.
“I thank Congress president Mallikarjuna Kharge for his statement (advising against making exaggerated promises). The BJP differentiates itself from other parties by not merely making promises, but by committing to them and ensuring their fulfilment. It is the only party in the country that stands by its words,” said Shah.
The home minister said Jharkhand has emerged as a major hub for the trafficking of minor girls and the abduction of women, ranking among the highest in the country. He announced ‘Operation Suraksha’, promising to end human trafficking in Jharkhand by 2027, besides the elimination of Maoist activities from the state in the next two years.
Shah said that Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission-Combined Graduate Level (JSSC-CGL) Competitive Exam will be cancelled and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and a Special Investigation Team (SIT) will investigate the previous CGL exams and all major paper leak cases.
“The paper leak mafia has devastated the future of the youth in Jharkhand under JMM’s protection,” Shah said.
He said that Jharkhand is the richest state in the country because of its vast mineral resources. However, despite this wealth, the people of Jharkhand are among the poorest in the nation. “This disparity is a result of Hemant Soren’s government and its policies,” Shah added.
Addressing a rally in Garhwa, Soren that the BJP does not care about the welfare of tribals, Dalits and backward communities. “Neither the UCC nor the NRC will be implemented here. Jharkhand will rely solely on the Chotanagpur Tenancy and Santhal Pargana Tenancy Acts. These people (the BJP) are spewing venom and do not care about tribals, natives, Dalits, or backward communities,” Soren said.
Soren also launched a scathing attack on Shah’s remarks that the JMM-led coalition was fuelling Maoist activities, stating that the election being held in two phases was testimony that Maoist activities had been curbed, unlike in the past when elections were conducted in five phases.
JMM-ally Congress said it is clear from the BJP manifesto for Jharkhand elections that its only campaign issue is “polarisation and the spread of the communal virus”.
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X that the language of Union home minister Amit Shah, who released the manifesto today, and campaign in-charge Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma makes it clear that the BJP will only depend on the “spread of bigotry, prejudice, and incitement of hatred in the name of religion” during elections.
“The language of the Union Home Minister who released the manifesto, and that of its campaign-in-charge – the Assam CM – makes it abundantly clear that the BJP has simply no answer to the extremely popular and impactful schemes of the JMM-INC government in the state.
“It will depend ONLY on the spread of bigotry, prejudice, and the incitement of hatred in the name of religion (sic),” Ramesh said on X.