Bhil Pradesh Demand: Why is there a demand for a separate Bhil state in Rajasthan, know what MP Rajkumar Roat said
Published by: Arvind Kumar
On Thursday, the demand for creating a Bhil state by combining 49 districts of four states Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra was raised again from Mangarh Dham, the main pilgrimage site of the tribals in Banswara district of Rajasthan. Thousands of people from the tribal community reached Mangarh Dham from all four states.
The tribal mega rally held on Thursday in Rajasthan demanding a separate Bhil state has alerted the security agencies. But politics thinks and sees differently. The question is why is a separate Bhil state being demanded? How much does it have to do with politics and why is the issue of Hindu vs non-Hindu being raised in it?
Tribals from four states have gathered in Mangarh, Banswara to demand a Bhil state. In this cultural mega rally, the speakers have demanded to create a new Bhil state by combining 49 districts of four states. However, this demand is not new. This issue was also hot just before the last Lok Sabha elections.
This issue was the most important in the election campaign of Rajkumar Roat, MP from Bharat Adivasi Party. He also got the benefit of this. He defeated Mahendrajeet Malviya, the most powerful leader of Rajasthan’s tribal belt, in the Lok Sabha elections. Till now Mahendrajeet Singh Malviya was considered the biggest face of the tribal belt. But now Rajkumar Roat has replaced him.
Direct impact on 25 assemblies of Rajasthan
How important the issue of tribals is for the politics of Rajasthan can be gauged from the fact that just before the mega rally, BJP’s Dalit leader Madan Dilawar had to apologize in the full house for his statement about the tribals. Talking about Rajasthan, eight districts, 92 lakh population, 25 assemblies are part of the tribal belt. Out of these, 17 seats are reserved for tribals.
BJP and Congress are also in focus
However, this time in the elections, Bharat Adivasi Party has formed an alliance with Congress. But for some time, these tribal leaders kept accusing both these parties that these two parties have been uniting here to push back the tribal leaders who are demanding a separate Bhil state.
The tribal belt is also very important for Congress and BJP. In the last one year, there have been frequent visits of Congress and BJP leaders here. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, former Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, CM Ashok Gehlot and many other big leaders have been continuously visiting here.
Demand to include these districts in Bhil Pradesh
Rajasthan: Banswara, Dungarpur, Barmer, Jalore, Sirohi, Udaipur, Jhalawar, Rajsamand, Chittorgarh, Kota, Baran and Pali
Gujarat: Aravalli, Mahisagar, Dahod, Panchmahal, Surat, Vadodara, Tapi, Navsari, Chhota Udaipur, Narmada, Sabarkantha, Banaskantha and Bharuch
Madhya Pradesh: Indore, Guna, Shivpuri, Mandsaur, Neemuch, Ratlam, Dhar, Dewas, Khandwa, Khargone, Burhanpur, Barwani and Alirajpur
Maharashtra: Nashik, Thane, Jalgaon, Dhule, Palghar, Nandurbar and Valsad
Special conversation with MP Rajkumar Roat regarding the demand for Bhil Pradesh
Bharat Adivasi Party MP Rajkumar Roat, who is demanding a separate Bhil state by combining 49 districts of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra, says that this demand has been there since independence. Earlier. He said that agitations have been going on since independence on this issue. Earlier, many leaders of BJP and Congress have also supported it. While talking exclusively with Amar Ujala, MP Rajkumar Roat answered questions related to this issue. Here are excerpts from the conversation…
Question: A mega rally was held on Thursday to demand Bhil Pradesh, why is this demand being made suddenly?
This demand is not new. This demand has been going on since before independence. Govind Guru, the idol of the tribals, had agitated for the demand of Bhil Pradesh. Even during the British period, this part was shown as Bhil Pradesh. Congress and BJP leaders have also supported the demand for Bhil Pradesh from time to time. Our party is also agitating for this demand.
Question: The government’s TAD minister Babulal Kharari has said that a state cannot be formed on the basis of caste?
Our demand is not based on caste. This demand is being made on the basis of regionalism and lifestyle, speech and traditions. States have been formed in Rajasthan on regional basis earlier also. Apart from this, there are many other issues on the basis of which we are demanding a separate Bhil state.
Question: You are in alliance with Congress, but why has Congress not given any official statement in your support regarding the demand for a separate Bhil state?
Not only Congress, BJP leaders have also raised the demand for a separate Bhil state from time to time. Mahendrajit Malviya, who left Congress and joined BJP, has also raised the demand for a separate Bhil state. But since we are raising this issue, Congress and BJP leaders are hesitant to say anything in this matter for fear of losing credit.
Courtesy: Amar Ujala
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