Bodos Quest for Socio-Political Identity: A Historical Perspective
March 2024 | Varshali Brahma and Vibhuti Singh Shekhawat
Abstract
In India, there are diverse groups of races- the Mongoloid, the Austric, the Aryans, and the Dravidian. North-eastern India has had different ethnic communities for a very long time. It is recognized as a diverse place of multiethnic states. Each social group has its own definite culture, languages, and customs. As such, in North-eastern States, since Independence, Indian politics has faced ethnic -conflict and inter-ethnic mobility. Most ethnic societies have experienced political articulation in the line of ethnicity. The Bodos of Assam had struggled to attain autonomy. So keeping in view such a scenario of a sociopolitical situation, this work will focus on the causes of identity assertion and analyze the phases of the Bodo ethnic movement for self-determination.
Key Words
Bodos, Identity assertion, Ethnicity, Ethnic movement.
I Introduction
The Bodoland movement of Assam is an important event not only in the part of India but now on the broader level being acquired at the forefront of international attention. After Independence, in the last half-century, the Bodo tribe of Assam has encountered a series of movements of society-cultural autonomy and eco- political. Although such problems of identity assertion among Bodos were observed long ago in the pre-independence era, this kind of phenomenon has given a large dimension after the Independence. Ethnicity and Identity have been the major issues of mobilisation in all parts of the North-eastern India. Within the state of Assam, historically the Bodos had been known to be marginalised community. The Bodos from the colonial period had been defining themselves as a community in apposition to other communities for which the educated intellectuals and elites have articulated their divergence from the Assamese society and highlighted their problems like social, economic and backwardness arising out of land alienation.
Since from a very long genesis, the Bodoland movement had a several forms moving towards the demand for a separate homeland.
Introducing the Land and People: The Bodos are the earliest settlers of Assam. It is believed that during the pre-historic era, the Bodos migrated to India from their original homeland of Tibet and China. E. Gait called them the “earliest known inhabitants of the Brahmaputra valley” (Gait E.A. 1967). At the time of the Mahabharata war, the Bodo, for a long time, occupied the plains of Assam valley and constituted the bulk of the population (Baruah K.L. 1966). S.K. Chatterjee believes they migrated to Assam in 1000 BC (Chatterjee S.K. 1974). B. Narzi stated that the Bodo people migrated to Assam in 2000 B.C. (Narzi B. 1962). However, the above discussion indicates that the Bodos are said to be Assam’s original and oldest autochthone (Endle Sydney 1975). The Bodos belong to the descendants of the Mongoliod race. They have formed a subsection under the Assam-Burma, a group of Bodo-Naga subgroup of the Tibeto-Burman branch of the Sino-Tibetan family. Numerically the Bodos are one of the essential tribes among Northeastern states. Sociologically, they are found all over Assam with the northern bank of river Brahmaputra along the foothills of the Assam, which are adjoining Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh. The Bodo population is also spread in some parts of North Bengal. The census report of 1927 mentioned that the Bodos have formed the 8th largest tribal society in India, and their population was around 8,67,017 (Pulloppillil 1997). The Census report of 1991 showed that the population of Bodos was 11,84,569 (Census of India 1991). Currently, the Bodos are concentrated in Kokrajhar, Dhubri, Goalpara, Darrang, Nowgang, Nalbari, Sonitpur, Kamrup, Barpeta, Dhemaji, Udalguri, Baksha, and Bongaigaon districts. The Bodos are recognized as the Scheduled Tribes of Assam by the Indian Constitution. As the origin of Bodos is concerned, it is a matter of conjecture and inference, as Bodos have no authentic history on it. It maintains the fact that Central Asia must have been the original home of the Bodos. S.K. Chatterjee pointed out that the north of China, in between the headwaters of Huang-Ho and Yang –tzse Kiyang rivers are the places where it was found to be the home from where they were dispersed and moved into different directions (Chatterjee 1974). One of the Mongoloid families migrated to Tibet and settled there for centuries. It asserted that the old name of Tibet was Ti-bod (Mochari M. 1997). It has been presumed that the Mongolids living in Ti-bod were known as Bod, later known as Bodo. In this context, Sydney Endle gave his opinion on the features and appearance of Mongoloid, which seems to suggest that Tibet and China are the two trans –Himalayan countries’ original homes of this race (Endle 1975). As the Imperial Gazetteer of India has also stated, the upper courses of the yang-tzse Kiyang and the Huang-Ho Rivers in North Western China were the original homes of the Tibeto- Burman race (Grierson 1908). Navigating the present remnants of their initial stock in Tibet proves challenging; nevertheless, no linguistic traces have been discovered. Ajay Roy talks about the physiognomical and temperamental similarity which was observed between the Bodos and the present Kham Tribes of Tibet. The Bodos were originally war-like and ferocious in nature as the Kham Tibetans (Roy 1995). Thus on the above views, it can be stated conclusively that Tibet and China were the original homes of the Bodos from where they had migrated to India.
The term Bodo to the whole group that is Kachari race was initially mentioned as the entire language that speaks the Tibet-Burman group known as Kacharis. The word Kachari1, a racial name for the Bodo linguistic group of people, appears in all the early books and Government records (Endle 1975). The name Bodo was given by Brian Hodgson who is known to be a linguist (Grierson 1903). Since then, the Bodo has been used both as a generic and nationality name by the authors of the later period. Therefore, we have seen the use of similar names for people such as Kachari, Bodo, Bodo-Kachari, and so on.
It needs to be highlighted that the Bodos had entered with their advanced way of civilization and got settled down in various areas of the Northeast. Since the pre-historic period, bricks and stone are usually used for building houses, royal palaces, gates, etc., with their advanced architecture. On the other hand, the Bodos belong to the agriculturalist, one of the agricultural base economies. The example of an irrigation system is another great witness seen during the civilization. M.M. Chaudhary mentions that it is believed that Bodos were noticed as the first agricultural nomads who entered this part of the globe. They were the first group to initiate the process of irrigation system and to train the autochthon societies of this region on how to domicile themselves to the plants (Chaudhary M.M. 1980). Along with that, the Bodo womenfolk are experts in weaving. Different varieties of silkworms that fabricate Muga Silk and Endi are still reared among the Bodo society. Then they are woven by them in their handlooms and manufactured into wrappers, dresses, and so on. Which always had an outstanding market, not in North-eastern India but also sold outside like in China and Tibet. The Bodos had maintained their border and trade link with the other neighbouring countries in the north and through the Chinese and Tibetan traders (Roy Ajay 1995). The Bodos export rice Endi cotton, silk yarn, and Muga. It signifies that after their settlement in Assam, the Bodos launched some new economic systems like Endi,
Muga Silk (now acknowledged as an important product of the Whole Assamese culture and export system) and the Barter system.
II Methodology
The methodology used in this research article was majorly based on the historical and descriptive study of the secondary sources. The data was collected from various sources through an extensive literature survey and analyzed for this study’s objectives. The secondary data was used throughout the paper accessed from various articles, books, and journals to understand Bodo’s quest for their socio- political identity.
III Bodos: A Historical Study
Since time immemorial in North-eastern India, the Bodos had a powerful kingdom and were a ruling race. After the Bodo settled down in this region, it was noted that the Bodos had ruled different parts of domains with various names. Therefore, at the time of migration the, Bodos took over each kingdom in this North-East region. Other sects of the Bodos were found over the reins in some areas of the Northeast in different periods. Those kingdoms were Koch Kingdom, Chutia Kingdom, Kachari Kingdom, Moran Kingdom, the Dimasa Kingdom, and the Borathehi Kingdom were occupied by them to their will. As such, there was no single unified kingdom under the Bodos. Since Bodos had a very significant historical background with powerful kings like Bhaskar Varman, Banasura, Bhagadatta, and Narakasura, the Bodos ruled a powerful kingdom in this part of the country. The Bodo king Narakasura was the first king appointed to the ancient Brahmaputra valley. It may be noted that Mahiranga Danava (the Aryanas used this word Danava to mean the non-Aryan Mongoloid people of the Assam region). However, he was known to be the first king of pragjyotishpura, in a real sense, he was not a king. After the Mahiranga dynasty, Narakasura established a kingdom; his reign became an essential chapter in political history and cultural history. Besides the Banasura Kingdom, it is believed that the branch of Bodos built an independent kingdom around Sadiya with the capital Sadiya after the expulsion from the Kamrupa. U.C. Guha highlighted that when the Bodos were spreading throughout the Brahmaputra valley, one of the kings named Koundilya Narayana had built a town called Koundilya and documented the whole kingdom and set it up in their language as Halali – meaning bright land. There is no information regarding the Kingdom Halali due to a lack of history (Guha U.C. 1921). According to S.K. Bhuyan, he asserted that there was a powerful Kachari kingdom recognized as Sadiya (the capital of the kingdom). Sadiya surrounded this kingdom on the east of the river Dikhow and the southwest bank of the Dihang river, with Dillih on the South (Bhuyan S.K. 1951).
From the above descriptions, it can been noticed that before the coming of the Aryans, the Bodos used to attain influential and independent kingdoms along with their traditional religion, customs, language, and economic system. There were no such influences from another language, religion, or culture. They lived a tribal conventional lifestyle. There is no caste system available in their society, and they maintained the same equality among them. Since the fifth century, after the advent of Aryans came into being, Vaishnavism influenced the tribal Bodo society, particularly in the Pragjyotishpura-Kamrupa. It must be mentioned that Aryan society was divided into four sections- Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Sudra on a caste basis (Nath D.N. 1988). This caste system naturally got influenced slowly during the period of ancient Kamrupa and the Varman dynasty’s reign. This influence had a more significant impact on society. But this influence was only limited to the royal families who came under the Aryan culture. However, such an effect whether it is invariable and necessarily initiated in Aryan –oriented society, this impact gradually ha its assimilation process where the Assamese language and culture took their major roots and Assamese being a common language and culture of the Aryans and non-Aryans.
During the advent of Ahoms, a great group of Shan race, the Bodo kingdom was surrounded by the rivers Kallang, Dhansiri valley, Dikhow, and the present north Cachar sub-division with the greater area of the southern Brahmaputra, with Dimapur as their capital (Dutta P.N. 1985). Such settlement of the flourishing kingdom at the state of Dimapur furnishes a shred of positive evidence that once upon a time the Bodos established and spread all over the Naga Hills with a heavy population in the capital city. During their reign at the capital city Dimapur, their kingdom played a wealthy and powerful role which became a glorious past among the Bodos. In fact, the Bodos were a powerful neighbour with an intense state of civilization that was more advanced. They attained over two hundred years against the Ahom for launching attacks against them (Roy Ajay 1995). But in the later course, since 1490 AD, an expansionist endeavour of the Ahoms clashed with the Bodos and other Hostilities. Later on, in 1536, Dimapur got attacked by the Ahoms, killed the prince Detsung and stripped the whole capital town. That was the end of the Bodo rule and its kingdom.
Moreover, it appears that they made a great effort towards building the formation of a greater Assamese society. Therefore, the Bodos felt they deserved more than they got. . So to alleviate the backwardness, the Bodos enabled themselves to have a respectful life, and hence, they must have political power. They wanted their due share in administrative affairs with political power. To gain this, the Bodos must have been e organized based on lingo-cultural traits, which could help them get a distinct identity and bargain with the ruling elite to share power with them. It made the Bodos realize that maintaining their distinct social identity and overall development of the society are complementary to each other. Since the beginning of the twentieth century, they began asserting their identity, transforming into a movement.
IV Discussion and Analysis
Part A: Socio-Economic Causes of the Identity Assertion
The Bodos ruled independently for an extended period, and no outside influence existed over their traditional culture and language. The Bodos enjoyed a distinct way of life. But this distinctness could not be maintained for quite a long time because the arrival of the Aryans marked the beginning of a new era of the socio- cultural fusion between Aryans and non-Aryans in this part of the country.
Automatically, the process whereby individuals or groups of differing ethnic heritage being absorbed into the dominant culture of society went on, bringing the diverse ethnic groups under one common cultural platform to lay the foundation of a composite Assamese society and culture. However, over the last few decades, when the Bodos ruled, the different cultures and societies like Brahminism, Bengali language, and culture witnessed a greater influence on their community. The Bodo group of people, especially the Bodos of lower Assam, currently known solely as Bodos of Assam, continued to maintain their language, culture, and tradition. The dominant Assamese Caste – Hindu culture existed, and the Bodos did not like to be submerged by this dominant Assamese Caste-Hindu culture. On the other hand, after the British annexation of the Bodo kingdom, the Bodos were completely disarrayed from their political Independence. Assam’s socio-economic and political scenario was changed significantly due to the colonial administration and its subsequent policies, which brought forth significant changes. Like other aboriginal tribes and races, the Bodos were downgraded from a position of prominence to one of backwardness. It is vital to have an idea of their historical and socio-economic background to understand better their socio-economic causes leading to the identity assertion of the Bodos of Assam. Once, the Bodos were a powerful race, and their kingdom was confined not only in the Northwest but even extended up to the Bay of Bengal in the South and up to Bihar in the West. The Bodos of Assam took pride in the glory of the past. Reminiscences of their glorious past have contributed to arousing identity consciousness among them. They now asserted themselves by prompting a strident movement to revive their past glory and their powers. Thus, the historical factor is one of their major causes for identity assertion.
Another critical factor for creating identity consciousness among the Bodos is Social Reformation. The period between the nineteenth century and the early part of the Twentieth Century was a period of chaos and confusion in their life. Then, the Bodo society was very socially and economically backward, and an unhappy state of affairs was prevalent among them since the very old ties in the society were losing their strength daily. Due to the miserable conditions of the social system, anarchism or chaos was at large in the community. Some differences also existed among the Bodos in matters relating to religion. A few of them had been converted to Islam, Christianity, and Vaishnavism. After embracing Islam (Brahma K, 1992) the Bodo people of the Panbari area under the subdivision of Dhubri of Goalpara district converted into Muslims. Although a section of Bodo’s converted to different religions, a large number of them still continued to profess/follow their own religion, which is the tribal religion2. The Bodos worshipped their original God Bathou, performed pujas with the sacrifices of animals and birds, and even used rice beer. No ceremony used to take place in the absence of rice beer. The division of the Bodo people in the name of different religions by using rice beer and sacrificing birds and animals affected society.
At such a critical point, a mighty man appeared among the Bodos known as Srimot Kalicharan Mech, also popularly known as “Gurudev Kalicharan”. The division of the Bodo society into so many groups in the name of faith and religion was unacceptable to Gurudev. So, he thought of uniting the whole community of the Bodos into one. He read the Saranitya Kriya, a book of rites and rituals of Brahma religion or Brahma Dharma, which is a collection of teachings of Srimont Param Sibanarayan Swami, initiator of Brahma religion and master of Kalicharan (Brahma K. 1992) and finally he concluded that the teachings of the Brahma religion would be highly appropriate for the Bodos. It is important to note that Brahma Dharma is a monotheistic religion based on the belief in the existence of a supreme being called Brahma, a collection of Upanishadic Brahma (Moshahary R.N. 1985). The basic principle of this religion is that Brahma is the only God and manifests himself in “Light” that emanates from the Sun and the Moon. The burning and worship of fire that is Hom – Yogya, known to the Bodos as Ahuti Shaoni, is the symbolic adoration of the light or Brahma, and that is all that required one to lead to Brahma. Brahma Dharma is Vedic in its rituals and is Upanishadic (Moshahary R.N. 1985) in its philosophy. He found something in the Brahma Dharma that he wanted for the Bodos to lead them from darkness to the light with the help of Brahma Dharma. The rearing of poultry, birds, pigs, and rice beer practiced at large by the Bodo community is considered discreditable by the neighbouring Assamese Hindus. In the opinion of Kalicharan, this practice led to the Hindu neighbours looking down on or casting the Bodo community. But what upset him the most was the lack of religious unity among the people. He noted that many Bodos had become Sarniya by accepting Hinduism and had assumed the titles like Koch, Rajbanshi, Chaudhary, Das, Deka, Saiba, Mondol, Karji, etc. these practices upset him. This was done to get social status raised or uplifted.
Moreover, the conversation with Saraniya about accepting Hinduism was impossible for every Bodo because it was a costly affair. On his initiation into the Hindu fold, it is said that one Raisahab Jagat Chandra Mohahary, the Mouzader of Patakata, was required to pay Rs. 6000 (Singh K.S. 1982). In various parts of Assam and north Bengal, Christianity slowly but steadily took its roots in the Bodo communities. In Goalpara district Assam, the Santhal mission of the Lutheran Churches and the American Baptist mission have absorbed several Bodos3 in Darrang and Kamrup districts, and the Anglican and the Baptist mission have drawn a sizeable number of Bodos into their folds (Basumatary S. 1977). The Scottish Mission had swept over many Bodos of the Mahakalguri area of Jalpaiguri district of north Bengal. Thus, the Bodos were breaking up as a community, and the total extinction of the people as a distinct tribal group was most feared to be imminent.
Perturbed by the circumstances, Kalicharan Mech felt the need to preserve the Bodo people’s unity and their true identity. He thought this could be possible only through a change in the Bodo society and its religion. Kalicharan launched a social reform campaign with the spread of Brahma Dharma. He even urged people to abandon the traditional practice of raising pigs and poultry. They want to stop brewing and alcohol consumption altogether. Instead, he encouraged business, business, weaving, carpentry, and more. He did not trust the practice of charging the bride at exorbitant prices. In 1913 he founded a secondary school with a weaving and carpentry center in Tipkai. It was later transferred to Sapatgram near Fakiragram in present-day Kokrajhar District and expanded into Sapatgram Integrated Academy. To facilitate the education of Bodo children, he also established a Brahma boarding house in Dubri (Basumatary S. 1977).
To encourage them in their education, he also submitted a memorandum to the Secretary of Education through Deputy Secretary A.J. Rainey in 1916 to convert the M.E. School of Tipkai into High School and to introduce the Assamese language at school (Moshahry R.N. 1985). As a result, most Bodos gradually became aware and began to get organized. In 1918, the first ever board organization, All Board-Chatra San Milan, was founded, and in 1924, Board-Maha Sabkha was founded. Therefore, it seems that Bodos initially realized their backwardness through social reform and even tried to educate themselves. It can be noted that at that time, their sense of establishment was limited only to socio- economic progress, but over time they also brought up political demands. Kalicharan Brahma submitted a memorandum to the Simon Commission in Shillong in 1929. This Memorandum was drafted by Sardar B.R. Kachari, Jadav Chandra Khaklary, and others who called for several political organizations for the tribes to form the Assam Plains Tribal League in 1933. At the request of the Tribal Federation, the Bodo tribe, along with other tribes, won reservations for at least five seats in the Assam Legislature in the 1937 elections (Tipkai 1986).
Another important factor that contributed to Bodo’s claim to identity is the economic factors, including historical and social factors. The Bodos, like other Assamese tribal groups, were originally cultivators. Centuries after they settled in Assam, the Bodo economy remained primarily an agricultural economy. In the early 19th century, British officials and American missionaries who contributed their agricultural expertise were held in high esteem. However, various types of rice were grown by Bodos, including cash crops such as mustard, cotton, and sugar cane. They were also engaged in animal husbandry, significantly raising pigs, autumn vegetables, cultivated vegetables, and seasonal fruits such as oranges and bananas. Both Muga and Endi silkworms are handwoven to produce different types of garments. In addition to these activities, Bodos were also involved in border trade. It is noteworthy that the Bodo, who settled north of Bengal and Assam after migrating from the border regions of China and Tibet through numerous mountain passes, maintained trade relations with the neighbouring hill tribes to the north. Through them, the Bodos continued trade with Tibetans and Chinese traders.
Over the centuries, several trade routes existed between Tibet and northeastern India through these passes. The hilly place where these paths lead to the plains of India is known as the Kachari-Dooar, the gateway to the Kacharis. There were several such doors in the north-western slopes of Jalpaiguri in North Bengal and the districts of Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Nalbari, Kamrup, Darrang, and Sonitpur districts of Assam. These doors were often controlled and operated by the authorities in Bhutan and Tibet (Roy Ajay, 1995). Chinese silk, ponies, musk-wax, rubber, gold dust, etc. were imported into India through this route, while the exported items included rice, cotton thread and textiles, silk thread, and dried fish during the winter season. The Bhootias4 were coming down these routes, and the trading of the above goods was between these hill tribes and the Bodos. This trading system immensely helped the Bodo economy.
The flourishing trade in Udalguri attracted some Assamese merchants from the Barpeta district, now a Kamrup District section popularly known throughout Assam as Barpetiahs5. As mentioned earlier, the Bodos used to produce mustard seed as a cash crop. The Barpetiahs came to Udalguri as mustard seed traders, reportedly in government dispatches (Provincial Gazateers of Assam, 1906). In the past, they exported mustard seeds for oil production outside Assam. But in somecourse r of time, their er superior business diversify into other trade routes, including frontier trading with hill traders, often forwards locally grown mustard seeds and other vegetables. In practice, this meant that the farmers were still paying a lower rate for the bounty of the crops they had in their fields upfront, which meant they would collect the crops after harvesting, and the prices were always much higher. The poor Bodo farmers were always short of funds, so they quickly embraced this futures trading system.
Gradually, this lucrative trade moved away from Bodos. Other factors contributing to Bodo’s socio-economic setbacks are education and employment issues. Education is known to play the most important role in the development and progress of society. The Bodo retreat in all parameters may therefore be related to their lack of education coupled with mass illiteracy and ignorance. The level of education in the District is far below that of the Assamese, and for a good reason. The Bodo were engaged almost exclusively in agricultural trade and using primitive methods, no theoretical knowledge was required. For Bodo farmers, sending boys to school meant losing workers on the farm. On the other hand, the language they had was exclusively spoken, without counter forms. Moreover, many adult Bodos who had daily business contact with their Assamese neighbours were able to speak Assamese with varying degrees of fluency. Today children learn the Assamese script. There was no help at home at that time, so it wasn’t easy. For such Bodo children, Assamese was as foreign a language as English. Assamese was the only language of instruction available in schools and colleges for Bodo students. The degree of unavailability of educational institutions in Bodos can be judged by the fact that by 1910 there was not a single school in the entire Douar region. Assam’s first state university, Cotton College, was established in 1901.
Sitanath Brahma Chaudhary, the first Bodo graduate, graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree. In 1936, during the last decade of the 19th century, Assam’s Anandaram Barua passed through the I.C.S. Assam’s elite embraced Western education and made it as far as Calcutta in the early 19th century. On the one hand, the complete absence of an elite class in the district community hindered such a surge of enthusiasm. Unlike the Assamese nobility, the Bodos never aspired to positions in Government as they had never enjoyed that privilege before. As such, Bodos have lagged in obtaining a modern education and in seeking alternative non-agricultural employment opportunities. At the turn of the 19th century, this drastic change that swept the entire state physically and mentally took them by surprise.
The social, religious, and economic consciousness of Bodos was transferred to political consciousness through problems of language and writing. The Bodo people have their language called the Bodo language. It can be confirmed that the language was once spoken by a large number of people spread over a wide area including Sadia in the east, North Bengal, Nepal in the southeast, parts of North Bihar in the west, and Sylhet in the South. Mymonsing, Cachar and Tripura (Brahmachaudhaury B.L. 1993). The Bodo people preserved their language and this Bodo language is still their native language. Their language is a symbol of identity, so they want to preserve and nurture it.
After the country’s Independence, the Bodo people were aware of their identity and took several important steps to develop their language, literature, and culture. Bodo Sahitya Sabha (B.S.S.), a literary body established in 1952, has been seriously committed to popularizing the Bodo language and literature since its establishment in 1953, according to the B.S.S. A memorandum to the then Chief Minister of Assam called for its introduction into primary schools in Bodo- controlled areas, but the Government took no action in this regard until 1963. On the contrary, the Assamese Government passed the Assamese Official Language Act in 1960, making Assamese the official language. Like other hill and plains ethnic groups, the Bodo also buried it as being the Assamese language imposed on non-Assamese by the Assamese Government. In response, the Bodo people launched a campaign to introduce the Bodo language into primary education under the banner of the B.S.S. As a result, in 1963 the Government introduced Bodo as the language of instruction at the first level, but this move by the Assamese Government failed to resolve the language problem, as Bodo students at the second level after passing the first level they need to study Assamese Medium. Therefore, it was found that it was a hurdle for Bodo students to continue their education after graduating from primary school. The Bodos were asked to claim Bodo as their language of instruction up to Sixth Form. However, the government and Assamese bureaucrats ignored this request, and Bodos felt that mainstream Assamese did not like the idea, as Bodo was not recognized as a state language by the Central Government.
They had a strong Bodo identity and wanted to preserve their identity and preserve their language (Barman S. 1995). This sentiment pushed them back into the movement, as demonstrated by a 25,000-person mass rally in Kokrajhar in 1968. Strikes, class boycotts, etc. all began in Bodo’s concentrated areas, and finally, the Government granted their demands later in the year. However, this was not the end of the Bodo language problems. In 1972, at the request of the All- Assam Student Union (ASSU), Guwahati University and Dibrugarh University introduced Assamese as the language of instruction in place of English in their universities. Bodo students, beyond enrolment at Bodo Medium, were directly prohibited from receiving a college education as a result of this change. The Government’s language policy had also created challenges for Bodo students. From this, the Bodos realized that without autonomy they could not have higher education, and without higher education, they could not think about their identity or the general development of their community. As a result, their socio-religious language and economic consciousness changed to political consciousness.
The Bodo problem was further complicated when in 1974 they began to require a Roman script for Bodo. Bodos didn’t have its script. Therefore, the creators of this language had to rely on different scripts at different times. The tribe was illiterate before the arrival of the British in Assam. Each group had its own language, but each was predominately spoken and had no written form. Christian missionaries first gave them the status of the written word when they wrote gospel literature. Initially, the Assamese or Bengali script was used, but later the Roman script was also used. By 1974, however, the Bodos used the Assamese script for their language. However, to protest the Assamese supremacist supremacy, Bodo began to demand a Romanized script for Bodo instead of Assamese. The Assamese Government, on the other hand, refused to comply with the Romanization request. Finally, Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India, pushed for the adoption of the Bodo Devanagari Bible in 1977. Today, borrowers are reluctant to accept Assamese and scripts for the Assamese middle-class Chauvinism. For example, when the Assam Secondary Board of Education (SEBA) passed an ordinance in a notice in 1986, making Assamese a mandatory third language instead of Hindi at Assam’s schools, the Bodo people resolutely d opposed it. Bodo leaders warned against an upset program to withdraw the SEBA circulation. So, the circulation was interrupted under the excuse of the Bodo and other non-Assamese. The Bodo were sceptical of the Assam government’s language policy. Therefore, the Memorandum of Understanding ABSU accused the Assamese and the Assam government of wanting to assimilate non-Assamese by imposing Assam’s language and culture. The Assamese and the Assam government were not aware of their mistakes (Memorandum of Understanding 1987).
It seemed to Bodos that the Assamese Government, ruled by an advanced group of Assamese people, did not like Bodos to progress on their own language and script. These problems made Bodos uneasy in the mixed Assamese society. A sense of alienation from mainstream Assamese society began in Bodo’s minds. The Bodos are not really opposed to Assamese society and culture, but they hope to be recognized for their own Bodo language and its development in the larger Assamese society.
Part B: Phases of the Ethnic Movement
The first phase of the movement: As a result, from the second decade of the Twentieth Century, the Bodo movement started with the first phase of the socio- religious reform movement. For the very first time, the Bodos were urged to preserve their self-identity under the leadership of Kalicharan Brahma in the course of religious reforms. He was concerned about the Bodo people’s conversion to Hinduism and adopting the Saraniya Caste, which was placed at the lowest rank of the Assamese caste Hierarchy where the Bodos lost their identity and failed to earn social respectability. He put forward the idea of a new religion in the year 1907- called as “Brahma” religion6. Since then, he was known as Kalicharan Brahma. He always made it a point while he was propagating the rich cultural heritage of the Bodos and urged them to take pride in being Bodo. It was another new experience in Bodo society. After many years of the historical void, the first time it emerged in the minds of the Bodo people at they are the people apart from the others with the identity and self-entity. They felt that they should not be disregarded. Finally, the Bodos got conscious of their society and identity.
Along with the religious movement, Kalicharan Brahma brought social reforms as well, to contribute to the spread of education among the Bodos. Besides, he played an important role in initiating a literary movement. He made a great effort in the Bodo written language which took shape in a standard form. His works were later escalated by several pioneering leaders like Ishan Mosahary, Rupnath Brahma, Pramod Brahma, and Sitanath Brahma Choudhury. Though the Christian Missionaries had used Roman script to write evangelical literature in the Bodo language the Bodo writers wrote the Bodo language in Assamese script and since then the Bodo language embraced the Assamese script as its own (Roy Ajay, 1995).
The Spread of western education and social-religious reforms have brought a resurrection amongst the few educated elite Bodos. To assimilate with such a spirit of a new beginning, in the year 1918, the Bodo students formed an organization named Assam Bodo Chatra Sanmilan at Dhubri –the Head Quarter of the undivided Goalpara District. The Bodo students took up the issues of their general improvement in culture, language, educational facilities, and employment opportunities for the Bodos. For the first time, the organization had brought some activities for bringing a sense of solidarity among the Bodos and to teach them how to fight for the remedy of their indignity. Similarly, an organization of the Sonowal Kachari youth was formed in the year 1927, known as Assam Kachari Jubak Sanmilan to raise their voices on the grievances and matters not strictly falling under the students’ activities7.
All such organizations in the course of time started to get involved in political activities which concerned the future of the Bodos. Simon Commission in the year 1928 visited Shillong- the capital city of Assam to figure out asolution on some sort of participation by the Indians in the administration of British India8. The Commission had asked the members from the “primitive and Backward Tribes” of Assam to claim before it at the Shillong on January 4, 1929. The plains tribals were under the “Primitive and Backward Tribes” (Basumatary B.K. n.d). The Goalpara District Bodo Association met the Commission at Shillong and submitted a memorandum demanding it to be considered a separate category of the Bodos in the Census Report. Whereas in the Memorandum, the Association wrote:
“The Bodo Community forms a considerable position of the population of the district of Goalpara and its numbers about one lac and fifty thousand. In the whole province of Assam, its total number is about eight lacs. A large number of Bodos live in the district of Jalpaiguri and kochbehar in the province of Bengal. Out of one lac and fifty thousand, some thousands have been treated as Hindus, which is the cause of a decrease in the number of the Bodo population of the district of Goalpara. The Bodos have a distinct civilization of their own. There should be a separate category for the Bodos in the Census Report”.
– Memorandum submitted by the Bodo community of Goalpara District to the Indian Statutory Commission, New Delhi on December 30, 1928
Along with that, there should be territorial redistribution, facilities for education and appointments, separate seats in the Dhubri Local Board, a separate Bodo regiment, and Separate Electorate Status for the tribals in the Legislative Council. These were the important points demanded by the Goalpara District Bodo Community. In this matter of separate electorate, they stated:
“In our opinion, there should not be a mixed electorate. Each section of people should have the liberty of sending in their representatives to the local council. The peculiar position in which we are placed, offers us practically no chance of sending our representatives to the council, though there is a large number of voters in our community, A liberal view of our opinion will show
that we cannot enjoy the advantages of the reforms as the other communiiesy do. In spite of our being such a large number, all advantages of the reform are being enjoyed either by Brahmins or by Kshyatriyas, or Sudras. So in order to Safeguard the Interests of our community we should have a separate representative in the council”– Memorandum submitted by the Bodo community of Goalpara District to the Indian Statutory Commission, New Delhi on December 30, 1928
The Second Phase of the Movement: the new birth of Bodo Sahitya Sabha (B.S.S.) was another important phase of the Bodo movement. This phase leads to the language and script movement. The B.S.S. was formed at Basugaon on 19, 1952 with Joy Bhadra Hagjer as the president and Sonaram Thaosen as the General Secretary. Their main motive is to develop and promote Bodo literature and language. They functioned from a zero point to pervade a new life into the decaying Bodo language and accretion of literature, language, and also a mass consciousness. The B.S.S. held many literary seminars, and meetings to promote Bodo language scholars and writers. Their aim was to unite all the Bodo groups of languages currently spoken in the Northeastern part under one umbrella organization. It was agreed to frame and construct the standard Bodo language, which could form the link language between all the Bodo tribes of the North-East and the common literary language of these tribes. This objective motivated the building up of similar bodies by other Bodo tribes and cooperation with them.
In the Third Phase of the Movement: the ethnic riots took place as another ugly and serious consequence noted in the Bodo movement between Bodos and Santhals. It was reported that there has been a constant armed revolt and conflict in the forest areas of Kokrajhar and Bongaigaon districts between the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) and Birsa Commando Force (B.C.F.) militants for long. The main problem behind such kind of violence was the large encroachment on the forest lands and infiltration of people of doubtful identity into the Bodo areas of these two districts which are written above. It may be noticed that the armed militant organization of the Santhals named Birsa Commando Force (B.C.F.) was working for the creation of the Jharkhand area within the proposed Bodoland area. This created an agitation among the Bodos about their own identity. The B.C.F. rallied with the Adivasi people in the name of Jharkhand. The rally started with looting, killing, and even challenging, threatening the Bodo people. It has greatly affected the peaceful and age-old existence of the aboriginal Bodos and Santhal people in the area. A large section of the armed Bodo youths took part in challenging all the activities of the Santhal extremists which resulted in the ethnic riots between the two communities. Hundreds of people lost their lives in these riots, and thousands of them became homeless and stayed in the different refugee camps where there were no sufficient funds or power. These issues split the Bodo People Party (BPP). Thus Premsing Brahma of the Bodo People Party with his certain understanding of the Congress- led the state Government went on to form another interim Council of B.A.C. (Bodoland Autonomous Council).
Under these circumstances, the powerful All Bodo Student Union (ABSU) rejected the Bodoland Accord signed on February 20, 1993. The ABSU’s main decision was to rejuvenate their struggle for a separate Bodoland State. With the view to unifying all the political parties, bringing them under one platform led to a dialogue. S.K. Bwiswmutiary- led the faction of BPP and was dissolved on February 20, 1996, which paved the unification process. Meanwhile, Premsing Brahma led the faction of BPP and snapped ties with the Hiteswar Saikia –led Congress. When the State Government failed to bring any concession to Bodoland Autonomous Council (B.A.C.), Premsing Brahma resigned from the Interim Council and dissolved his faction of BPP on March 26, 1996 (Assam Tribune, 1998). With both the factions, the All Bodo Student Union formed another organization named Bodoland Statehood Movement Council (BSMC). The ABSU on April 13, 1998, also regenerated the Bodoland People Autonomous Council (BPAC) which was dissolved in 1993 after the signing of the Bodo accord to spearhead a mass movement.
In the Assembly election in the year 1996, Prafulla Kumar Mahanta came to power in Assam and led the Ason Gana Parishad (A.G.P.). People’s Democratic Front (PDF) and another political party that made an alliance with the A.G.P. As the Interim Council of B.A.C. was formed under the leadership of Kanakeswar Narzary as per the notification from the State Government, the All Bodo Student Union and Bodo People Autonomous Council in the 1993 Bodoland Accord reflected betrayal of the Bodos and demanded the breaking of the Accord. The ABSU and BPAC combined and declared a fresh movement at the 31st annual conference at the beginning of February 20, 1999, to persuade the Central Government for the separate state of Bodoland. They pointed out that nothing short of a separate State of Bodoland could solve the issues of the Bodo people. The Bodo organization and the Assam Government developed a fresh notification on April 9, 1999, to incorporate 259 villages into the Bodoland Autonomous Council area (Assam Tribune, 1998). Subsequently, on May 13, 1999, the State Assembly passed the B.A.C. Amendment Bill amidst all the protests from the Bodo organizations. The ABSU later rejected along with the BPAC the demarcation for excluding the Sirampur Check post, Bijni, Tangla, and some other villages, the Bongaigaon refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (BRPL), and the Manas National Park despite their demands to include them in the Bodoland Autonomous Council (B.A.C.). Their step sparked a fresh strident demand for a Separate Bodoland State rather than solving the issues.
While in the meantime, there were several rounds of meetings and dialogues between the Assam Government and Indian Government on the one hand and the B.L.T., ABSU, and BPAC on the other, to arrive at the Bodoland Accord to solve the Bodo problems. As a result, another accord was signed between the Centre and B.L.T. to form Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) on February 20, 2003. Besides the B.L.T. and ABSU (the Bodo student groups) and BPAC whole heartily welcomed this agreement. But the NDFB rejected it. However, the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) under the provision of the amended Indian Sixth Schedule of the Constitution was formed.
From the above-mentioned discussion, the result was that the Bodo movement is an old age grievance and not a sudden outcome. Initially, the Bodos wanted only to develop themselves economically, educationally, and socially. During that period this movement was not strong enough. But right after the Indian Independence, the Bodos realized that unless they attained a separate homeland and own autonomy they could not revitalize their lost identity and their glorious heritage and culture. Thus, for this reason, the Bodos got involved in this Bodoland movement. Since, the third decade of the Twentieth Century, powerful Bodo educated began to emerge. Under the banner of the tribal league at the beginning, they struggled a lot at various levels to protect their tribal interest. Due to their persistent endeavour of the Tribal League, the Line system and Tribal belts and Blocks were generated. The Bordoloi Sub-committee to the Constituent Assembly representing Assam ignored the opinions of the tribal people of Assam gradually and assimilated them into the Assamese society. In fact, there was no safeguard provided to the Assam plains tribals in the Sixth Schedule of the Indian constitution.
In August 1985, Assam Accord was signed after six long years of agitation by the All Assam Students Union (AASU) and Asom Gana Sangram Parishad (AGSP). But the ABSU strongly opposed the Accord and termed them Anti-tribal. Certain actions of the newly created Asom Gana Parishad (A.G.P.) led by the Assam Government had affected the Bodo people and provided immediate provocation to the ABSU. Under the leadership of Upendra Nath Brahma, was launched a massive movement in 1987 demanding a separate homeland of Bodoland. The movement had witnessed a growing militancy among the Bodo people. When the Bodo agitators destroyed the railways and road communication system that linked the entire northeast with the rest of the country that affected the whole Northeastern, it came into the light of national attention. The state was under massive pressure to bring a solution to the problems. After the prolonged negotiations, both the Government of India and the Government of Assam’s last much-known Bodoland accord signed on February 20, 1993, provided the formation of a Bodoland Autonomous Council. However, it seemed a relief among the Bodo society, but it was proved wrong and it took no time for the people to realize the futility of the B.A.C. Both the State Government and Bodo organizations failed to reach an agreement made on the demarcation of the boundaries of the B.A.C. Having failed to fulfill the aspiration for the Bodos, the ABSU rejected the Accord. And they started demanding the creation of the Bodoland State, the same way the other three states Chattisgarh, Uttarakhand, and Vanachal were created in the year 2000. After a series of dialogues between the Centre and the B.L.T. including the ABSU for creating a fresh Bodo Accord signed in 2003, which is known as Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) and administers a territory of around 3,108 villages making four districts- Kokrajhar, Udalguri, Chirang, and Baksha, was formed under the provision of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India.
It assessed that it is a regional movement which seemed to be the various phases of the Bodo movement for all round development and autonomy. This phenomenon in any state or society upraised the regional movement among the particular section of people in a natural way when they are lacking in the developmental parameters compared to the advanced communities. This is when they felt deprived and ignored by the other state members. The development of their own communities is the prime subject of this movement. They had expressed their feelings and resentment either in a violent or non–violent way. They took the neighbouring advanced society to be their enemies. Their anger indicates their attacks on the neighbouring communities. This brought the regional movement of a multi-national state to a natural cause. This movement was part of the process of national integration rather than a threat to the nation. Because regionalism is an essential mode of national integration. The Bodoland movement in general and in the context of Assam, in particular, is not a threat but all the process of national integration. The development of the Bodo community and locality will indirectly help in process of nation-building. Again this movement is not based on the revolutionary one, but it is more of ideology of class struggle with some elements of class struggle built into its ideology (Sharma 2006).
V Conclusion
It is clear from the above description and the paper describes that the Bodos over the years have struggled for their political rights and to safeguard their ethnic language, identity, and culture for the overall development of the region. Over the years the Bodos underwent movement overground and underground to achieve their political aspiration to have a separate Bodoland. The creation of BTC in the year 2003 played a major socio-political development and ushered in a new ray of hope for peace and growth of the Bodo society. This political development has brought notable changes in the social, and political life of the Bodo people. Nevertheless, the Bodoland movement has many stories of suffering and has also brought many positive impacts on the Bodo society like preservation of language, political consciousness, ethnic identity and culture, and social and economic development. Despite many political demands, the struggle of the Bodo people still continues. So this paper brought the heroic struggles that the Bodos faced and they urged them to live naturally with dignity, and social and political rights. With this, it helps us to understand the changes in the Bodo community, the emergence of Bodo nationalism, and their phases of struggles for getting an identity of their own. Thus the Bodoland movement was neither called as revolution or reform movement. But that is a transformative movement who aimed to bring out the structural changes in the distribution of resources and powers. This element of conflict in this movement acquires a sharper focus than in the reform movement, of which the Brahma movement has been one of the good example in this movement.
According to R.N. Moshahari and M.R. Moshahary, the word Kachari derieved from the word Bodo Korisa Ari which means first born race or people or the earliest settlers of the region and the forerunners of them who were the Aryans must have spelt Korisa Ari or Korosari. Whatever the name Kachari or Kosari, it is clear that they are known as the earliest settlers of this region.
Endnotes
Tribal religious practices are animistic in nature. It has its own distinct character. The Bodos followed religious system of their own and which is free from influence by other religious system. They worship Bathou Borai in the form of a Cactus of the Euphorbia Splended, which is called Sijau in Bodo. It is equated with Lord Shiva. They also have a number of Gods and Goddess whom they worship in own customs.
O. Hodne, the seed Bore Fruit (A short History of the Santhal Mission of the Northern Churches, 1867-1967), Santhal Parnagas, 1967, pp.31-32
Collective term for all tribes living in the hills of Bhutan and the western hills of Arunachal Pradesh.
These Assamese Caste –Hindu traders hails from Barpeta, hence they are popularly known as Barpetiah.
It is like a half-way house between Hindu and Bodo religious beliefs.
The “Assam Kachari youth Association” was formed in 1927 by dissolving the Dangari Kachari Jubak Sanmilan which was the first social organization of the Sonowal Kacharis of Assam, born in 1921 at dangari village of present Tinsukia district of Assam. Later on, they felt the need of a common political organization to fight for fulfilment of aspirations. In view of this, the Bodos in 1993 and all the plains tribal groups including the Mikris, Khamtis and Shyams met at the Annual session of the Assam Kachari Youth Association held at Raha, Nowgaon district and formed a common political platform, by dissolving “Assam Kachari Youth Association”, under the banner of the “Assam Plains Tribal League”.
The Simon Commission or the Indian Statutory Commission was constituted at St. James, London, on November 26, 1927 with the following persons-Sir John Alles-brrok Simon, Chairman, Mr. Henry Lawson Webster, Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal, Viscount Burnham, Mr. Donald Sterling Palmer, mr Edward Cecit George Cadogan, Mr. Stephen Walsh. However, on December 7,1927, Mr. Stephen walsh resigned and Mr. Veron Hartshorn was appointed in his place.
Affiliation
Varshali Brahma, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Mount Carmel College
Autonomous, Bengaluru, Palace Rd, Abshot Layout, Vasanth Nagar, Bengaluru 560052, Karnataka,
Email: 2018rhs9047@mnit.ac.in
Vibhuti Singh Shekhawat, Professor, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, MNIT, Jaipur, Jawaharlal Nehru Marg, Malaviya Nagar, Jaipur 302017, Rajasthan, Email: vibhutisingh@mnit.ac.in, I am profoundly grateful to my Professor and Ph.D. Guide Dr. Vibhuti Singh Shekhawat for his immense support in writing this research article. I am also thankful to all the previous researchers and professors for their valuable insights into the historical views on the Bodos and their sociopolitical identity.
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———- (1998), December16.
———- (1998), October 18