Assam’s tea-tribe community celebrates Murmu’s win in Presidential poll

Assams tea-tribe community erupted in joy with many breaking into the traditional dance after it became clear that NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu, a tribal leader of Odisha, is going to be the new President of the country.The ruling NDA in Assam also took out a procession here, led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

Assam's tea-tribe community erupted in joy with many breaking into the traditional dance after it became clear that NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu, a tribal leader of Odisha, is going to be the new President of the country.

The ruling NDA in Assam also took out a procession here, led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. ''Took part in a rally along with BJP National VC Shri @PandaJay ji to celebrate the grand victory of NDA's Presidential candidate Hon'ble Smt Droupadi Murmu ji. Her victory reflects Adarniya PM Shri @narendramodi ji-led NDA Govt's commitment for tribal rights & naari shakti,'' Sarma tweeted. Murmu has crossed the 50 per cent mark after the third round of counting to emerge victorious in the poll over her rival Yashwant Sinha.

In various tea gardens across the state, women, dressed in white and red coloured saris with flowers tucked into their hair, were seen dancing ‘jhumur’ to the beats of traditional ‘dhol’ (drum) and singing peans to the new President of the country.

Celebrations were being planned since last week as Murmu’s win was expected, and as it became certain, people came out in hordes on streets to burst crackers and make merry.

Murmu is an Adivasi, belonging to the Santhal tribe of Odisha, but in Assam, the Adivasis, including the Santhals are referred to as ‘tea and ex-Tea tribes’ comprising Mundas, Oraons, Santhals and others. They are descendants of the labourers brought from the Chotanagpur plateau region, mostly in Jharkhand now, by the British to work in the tea gardens of Assam.

“A woman from our community has been elected the President of the country. We are overjoyed and our celebrations will continue till she moves into the Rashtrapati Bhavan,” a prominent leader of the community and former President of All Adivasi Student Association of Assam (AASAA) Raphael Kujur said.

Her win is a ‘’victory of the Adivasis and the tribals of the country and we plan to celebrate it for over a week by dancing, singing and organising various cultural activities’’, AASAA’s founder Secretary General Joseph Minz said. All members of the tea tribe community were asked to put up her photographs and posters across the state to celebrate her win, Minz said. The happiest among them all is probably Rukmini Kisan Barkotoky, who had spent six days with Murmu in 2006 when she had come to campaign for a BJP candidate Diganta Ghatowar from Bishwanath assembly constituency.

''She is a very humble lady and we are sure that she will work in the interest of our community in the future,'' she said.

Rukmini, a resident of the Mijika Jan tea garden, said that on the day of the Presidential election, ''we had prayed at a local temple and now that she has won, we will offer our thanks again at the same temple''.

Comprising a population of nearly seven million, the tea tribes do not have the Scheduled Tribe status in Assam which they have been demanding for long and now hope that it will be realised since ''one of our own is in the highest office of the land''.

Secretary of Adivasi National Convention Committee, an umbrella body of all Adivasi organisations, Bir Singh Munda said, ''We hope that the problems of not only the Adivasis but also all backward and downtrodden communities will be addressed by her so that they can move ahead towards progress and prosperity.'' ''The Adivasi communities in Assam are immensely proud of Murmu’s achievement as a tribal but it is indeed sad that people of her community are not considered as a Scheduled Tribe here,'' a journalist from the community, who did not want to be identified, said.

It is, however, not just the tea tribes who are celebrating Murmu’s win.

Representatives of the Bodos, with the largest tribal population in the state, Karbis, Mishings, Dimasas, Sonowal, Rabhas and Hajongs among others have also expressed their happiness at her victory.