Members of Parliament and Jharkhand Legislative Assembly gathered in Delhi today for a meeting of the All India Adivasi Congress (AIAC), where they deliberated on key issues including the Sarna Religion Code, constituency delimitation, and other pressing matters. The meeting was chaired by Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi.   The meeting saw participation from tribal representatives not only from Jharkhand but also from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Representing Jharkhand were Lohardaga MP Sukhdev Bhagat, Agriculture Minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey, and MLAs Sona Ram Sinku, Naman Vixal Kongadi, and Bhushan Bada.   During the discussions, Congress MP Sukhdev Bhagat strongly advocated for the inclusion of the Sarna Dharma Code as a separate category—specifically the seventh column—in the national caste census.   The meeting, focused on promoting tribal welfare at the national level, also featured inputs from Minister Shilpi Neha Tirkey, who highlighted concerns regarding the Sarna Code, the creation of a Tribal Legal Council, and the implications of delimitation on tribal constituencies.   Tirkey expressed her views on the problem related to land in Jharkhand and its future. She said that in a state like Jharkhand, the previous Raghuvar Das government had hatched a conspiracy to evict the peasants from their own land in the name of land digitization. Wrong names in land records, wrong plot numbers, registering someone elses name in register 2, all this was done in the name of land digitization.   She said that the decision of the government affected every section of the state, especially the tribal society. Even today, the innocent tribal families of Jharkhand are forced to visit the zonal office with land related documents and khatian. There is no one to help them. Even in the court, the tribal families are not getting justice only because they do not have a good lawyer or someone to guide them. She suggested a fresh survey in the state in the meeting. Along with this, the minister also suggested the formation of a Tribal Legal Council in the state. She said that this will help in timely settlement of tribal land related matters. The council will make arrangements for lawyers for legal help to the tribal families and provide them better suggestions. It is very important to organize camps for land reform in every village by running a campaign in the state. With the help of this camp, the errors in land related matters can be corrected.   The Minister said that the system of other columns in the caste census in the country before 2016 should be continued as the seventh column this time as well. She said that for the nature worshipper tribals, there should be a seventh column or Adi column, Sarna religion column in the census form.   Tirkey also raised the issue of Jadugoda of Singhbhum district of Jharkhand in the meeting. She said that due to continuous dumping of nuclear waste in Jadugoda for many years, the people of tribal families are suffering from many types of physical diseases. The government should take important steps for the rehabilitation of the affected immediately.   The Minister said that if delimitation takes place in Jharkhand, then in such a situation, the seats previously reserved for tribals should remain reserved even after delimitation. Otherwise, the existence of tribals will end. Tribal Congress President Vikrant Bhuria and Jharkhand State In-charge K Raju along with Tribal MLAs and MPs of Jharkhand were present in the meeting.

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