Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has decided to revive its demand for ‘Greater Jharkhand’. The party has decided to launch a movement in favour of their old demand. On the second day of the three-day convention at Gopal Maidan, Bistupur the party leaders brainstormed on the issue to revive its old demands to regain its lost glory.
Addressing a Press conference, Supriyo Bhattacharya, general secretary of JMM said that ‘Greater Jharkhand’ consists of Purulia, Bankura, and Midnapore districts of West Bengal, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar, Sundergarh and Sambalpur districts of Odisha. The party has not included some areas of Chattisgarh.
“It was JMM that first raised this demand and we are still in support of it. As per the culture and traditions the areas under Odisha and West Bengal have tribal dominated population. This is a common agenda of all the Jharkhand parties, and therefore, we decided to start the movement in a democratic way,” said Supriyo Bhattacharya, a senior leader of JMM.
He said that Odisha and West Bengal must constitute Autonomous Development Council (ADC) comprising these tribal-dominated districts as per constitutional process to merge into Jharkhand. Bhattacharya claimed that JMM has a strong base in West Bengal while it had already made its presence in Odisha by winning six Assembly seats and one MP seat.
He also informed that issues such as prevailing political scenario of the country and state, domicile policy, land Acquisition Act was deliberated during the convention Jharkhand was created in 2000 out of Bihar whereas the proposed Greater Jharkhand of 1950 consisted of four districts of Orissa, three districts of West Bengal, two districts of Chattisgarh and parts of Bhagalpur sub-division of Bihar, they said.
The party sources also informed that on the last day of the convention there would be organizational elections on the last day on April 18 which is likely to witness Hemant Soren being made the executive president of the party by bringing an amendment in the party constitution. This would be first instance when a post of executive president would be created in the JMM party.
The central convention, held after every three years, is being held in city for the third time in the party four-decade long history, witnessed around 4,000 delegates not only from Jharkhand but also from neighbouring states of Odisha, Bengal, Assam, Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. Earlier, the central convention was held in Karandih (1997) and Dimna lake (2003).