SUMAN K SHRIVASTAVA
Ranchi, Sept 12: The Union Ministry of Home Affairs today said that the Christian population growth from Independence to 2011 at the national level was 231 while in Santhal Pargana it was 6748 per cent.
The ministry, in an affidavit filed in the Jharkhand High Court, has pointed out that the share of the Hindu community as proportional to the total population decreased by 4.28 per cent at the national level, but in Santhal Pargana the proportion decreased by 22.42 per cent.
STs’ share decreased to 28.11 per cent from 44.67 per cent.
Santhal Pargana comprises six districts -Dumka, Deoghar, Godda, Sahibganj, Pakur, and Jamtara.
“The share of the scheduled tribe’s population decreased to 28.11 per cent from 44.67 per cent. The share of the Muslim community increased by 4.31 per cent at the national level, and the number in Santhal Pargana increased by 13.3 per cent,” the affidavit filed in response to a PIL filed by Danyaal Danish has stated.
Danish has stated that there has been a demographic change in the region due to continuous infiltration by Bangladeshi nationals.
His lawyer Rajiv Kumar said that he will not seek the court to order a probe by a commission headed by a retired army general to probe how these demographic changes happened in the region over the years.
The Centre has stated that the quantum of decrease in tribal population is due to outward migration, low childbirth rate, and conversion to Christianity. “These reasons need also be assessed,” it added.
Hindus reduced to 67.95 per cent from 90.37 pc
According to the Centre’s reply, the total population of Santhal Pargana in the 1951 census was 23,22,092, of which Hindus were 90.37 per cent, Muslims 9.43 per cent, and Christians 0.18 per cent. “In the 2011 census, the total population of Santhal Pargana was 69,69,097 of which Hindus were 67.95 per cent, Muslims 22.73 per cent, and Christians 4.21 per cent. Of the total population in 2011, the tribal population was 28.11 per cent,” it added.
It has stated that the infiltration is assessed to have taken place through Sahibganj and Pakur districts mainly, which are contiguous to West Bengal. “There has been an increase in the number of Madarsaas in the past few years. Infiltrators preferred these areas because of the common dialect which helped their integration,” the MHA stated.
The Centre has pointed out that there were instances of misuse of loopholes in the existing land laws like the transfer of tribal land to non-tribals through the affidavit of ‘danpatra’ (gift), by Muslims to acquire land in the region.
“In one such instance, an altercation occurred on July 18 this year in Pakur, between tribals and Muslims, when a Muslim family took over a piece of land based on ‘Danpatra’. “However, linkages to Bangladeshi immigrants in any of these land-related cases have not been established so far,” it added.
The MHA has stated that existing laws empower the State government to prevent illegal immigration and initiate legal action against infiltrators.
