On the demand of Sarna religious code, the Central Sarna Committee, All India Tribal Development Council, Ranchi Mahanagar Sarna Samiti, Tribal Sengel Abhiyan and various organizations organized a day long dharna near Raj Bhavan demanding Sarna religious code from the Central Government. A memorandum was submitted to the Governor. Tribal leaders from Lohardaga, Gumla, Hazaribagh, Palamu, Pithoriya, Ormanjhi, Hatia, Namkum, Mandar, Itki, Bero and other places participated in the dharna. The central president of Central Sarna Committee, Phoolchand Tirkey said that tribals are natural worshipers who have been following the Sarna Code for a long time. They are fighting the battle for long, but till date they have not got religious rights.
“Tribals have now understood that without struggle there is no Sarna code. The Central Government should accord religious code to Sarna tribals otherwise they will intensify their agitation,” said Tirkey.
All India Tribal Development Counci president Satyanarayan Lakra said that it is question of life and death of 15 crore tribals who have been demanding Sarna religious code. Lakra also dared Centre not to test their patience. General Secretary Sanjay Tirkey said that the government wants to take away the right of religious freedom to the tribals, there is a right to religious freedom under Article 25 of the Constitution of India, but forcibly the tribals are being made Hindu and Christian.
Sarna, a so-called "religion" based on the concept of nature worship, is followed by tribals in several Indian states including Jharkhand. Tribals in Jharkhand have long been demanding a separate Sarna religious code in the Census.
The Jharkhand Assembly last year in November unanimously passed a resolution seeking the inclusion of Sarna as a separate religion in Census 2021.
Tribal leaders across the state had been demanding the implementation of the Sarna Code in census surveys, which would allow the tribals to be identified as followers of the Sarna faith during the census of 2021 which is round the corners, tribal outfits were exerting pressure on the government to bring the legislation. So far, the census surveys have included them as “others” in the religion column. The BJP though has supported the State Government at assembly but is not much active. Recently, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) criticized the national working committee of the BJP’s ST Morcha over its alleged silence on one of the long standing demands of Jharkhand's tribal communities — a separate religious code for Sarna.