Paper Title: Political System in Munda Tribal Society: Continuity and Change
Author:
Abstract:
The Political system plays an important role in tribal community as well as in tribal life. Such organisation is found among the tribal as a whole or social grouping such as local group, clan etc. It is the sum total of the patterns, relations, process etc. builds up around the concept, art and practice of the government. Like other institutions political organisation also included traditions, laws, functionaries, conventions, communication devices etc. This organisation is accomplished through a leader or group of leaders who command the members of the groups. These leaders maintain peace within the political groups & organisation. The headman in the Munda tribal society is partly independent and partly regulated by the non-tribal tradition but headman played his traditional role in the inner world of traditional society. Now- a- days they do not keep themselves away from the light of education .Even Munda women are going to schools and colleges. Though they have adopted the modern social and political system, they have not rejected their traditional system and culture. Here is the peculiarity. They absorb themselves in appropriate jobs under public or private sectors, taking part in various developmental programme organised by the Government, responding to the various social medical programme initiated by the Government. They are habituated with the modern social & political system but they have not given up their own traditional socio-political system. Generally Munda tribes do not go to the Police or modern political system to settle their disputes as they rely much more on their village leaders. Today the role of traditional Panchayat is on decline. Mundas have also deviated from their own traditional Panchayat System based on the primitive customary rules of the tribal community. They aptly participated in Panchayat System of the state in spite of having their own Panchayat System. They also take part in active politics and in election system. Thus the several changes occurred in the lifestyle of Mundas since various tribal developmental programmes initiated by the government from the days of First Planning.
Keywords:Political Organisation, Hatu Panchayat, Continuity and Change, Tribal community, Parha Panchayat, Pahan, Pujar, Mahato, Pascimbanga Panchayat Act, Aboriginal.
DOI Link – https://doi.org/10.63431/AIJITR/2.III.2025.48-55
Review By – Dr. Sudipta Halder Maity & Dr. Rajib Sinha