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{{distinguish|All India Jharkhand Party}}
{{Infobox Indian Political Party
|party_name = Jharkhand Party
|abbreviation = JKP
|foundation = {{Start date and age|df=yes|p=y|1949|3|5}}
|headquarters = [[Ranchi]], [[Jharkhand]]
|founder = [[Jaipal Singh Munda]]
|merged =[[Indian National Congress]]
|dissolution= 20 June 1963
|ideology={{ubl|[[Jharkhand|Jharkhand statehood]]|[[Adivasi|Indigenous rights]]|[[Regionalism (politics)|Regionalism]]}}
|eci=Registered
|colorcode={{party color|Jharkhand Party}}
|colours = {{Color box|{{party color|Jharkhand Party}}}} Green
| predecessor = Adivasi Mahasabha
|no_states=Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal
|symbol = [[File:Indian Election Symbol Cock.png|150px]]
|website =
{{URL|jharkhandparty.org}}{{efn|The Jharkhand Party has used various domains for their website in the past, including {{URL|https://www.jharkhandparty.com}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/https://www.jharkhandparty.com archived]), {{URL|https://www.jharkhandparty.org}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/https://www.jharkhandparty.org archived]), and {{URL|https://www.jharkhandparty.in}} ([https://web.archive.org/web/https://www.jharkhandparty.in archived]). However, these websites are now defunct, and no active official website is currently maintained.}}
}}

The '''Jharkhand Party''' ('''JKP''') is one of the oldest [[political parties in India]]. formed on 5 March 1949 by ''Marang Gomke'' [[Jaipal Singh Munda]] in [[Ranchi]]. The party grew out of the demand for a separate [[Jharkhand]] state.

The Jharkhand Party participated in the [[Bihar Legislative Assembly]] elections of [[1952 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1952]], [[1957 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1957]], and [[1962 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1962]]. For more than 15 years, the Jharkhand Party was the only major opposition political party against the [[Indian National Congress]] in Bihar. In 1955, the Jharkhand Party submitted a memorandum for the creation of a separate state of Jharkhand to the [[States Reorganisation Commission|States Reorganization Commission]], but the state was not created for linguistic and economic reasons.<ref name="a">{{cite book|title=The Unrest Axle: Ethno-social Movements in Eastern India edited by Gautam Kumar Bera|pages=45–50|isbn=9788183241458|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9qrmTdshzKQC&q=Maharaja+Kameshwar+Singh+darbhanga&pg=PA48|last1=Bera|first1=Gautam Kumar|year=2008|publisher=Mittal Publications }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/jharkhand/reunion-bells-ring-for-jharkhand-party-factions/cid/508512|title=Reunion bells ring for Jharkhand Party factions|website=m.telegraphindia.com}}</ref>

==History==
===Formation===
The 19th-century sociopolitical movement in the lower [[Chota Nagpur Division|Chotanagpur region]], initiated by tribals to address their issues, gave rise to several tribal rights organizations, predominantly led by educated [[Christianity in Jharkhand|Christian tribals]]. One of the earliest was the ''Chotanagpur Unnati Samaj'', founded in 1915 by Rev. Joel Lakra with help of Theble Oraon, Bandi Oraon and Paul Dayal, aimed at promoting education and social reform.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Das |first=Victor |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=63VuAAAAMAAJ |title=Jharkhand, Castle Over the Graves |date=1992 |publisher=Inter-India Publications |isbn=978-81-210-0298-1 |language=en}}</ref> The organization demanded autonomy and socio-cultural protection to the [[Simon Commission]] during its visit to [[Patna]] in 1928. Around the same time, the ''Chotanagpur Catholic Sabha'' was formed under the leadership of [[Boniface Lakra]] and Ignes Beck (1928–1929), while non-convert [[Munda people|Munda tribals]] established the ''Munda Sabha'' in 1929, although it failed to garner broad support. In 1931, peasant group broke away from the Unnati Samaj and founded the ''Chotanagpur Kisan Sabha'', with Laurentius Barla as president and Theble Oraon as secretary, focusing on agrarian and cultural concerns in the [[Kurukh people|Oraon]] belts. Similarly, in the early 1930s, some tribal traditionalists established the ''Sarna Sabha'' and began articulating the "[[Sarnaism|Sarna]]" ethno-religious identity bloc.<ref>Hembram, P. C. (1988). pp. 87–88.</ref> By this time, the Unnati Samaj had reorganized as the ''Adivasi Sabha'', a secular front for tribal consolidation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bara |first=Joseph |date=1997 |title=Western Education and Rise of New Identity: Mundas and Oraons of Chotanagpur, 1839-1939 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4405287 |journal=Economic and Political Weekly |volume=32 |issue=15 |pages=785–790 |issn=0012-9976}}</ref> However, in [[1937 Indian provincial elections|1937 Bihar Provincial Assembly elections]], only the Catholic Sabha managed limited success, winning two out of thirty-eight seats from Chotanagpur, while other tribal groups failed to gain representation. This electoral setback revealed the fragmented nature of tribal politics and prompted calls for unity, and in May 1938 the Adivasi Mahasabha ({{literally|Great Assembly of [[Adivasi]]s}}) was formed through consolidation of the Sabhas, with Theodore Surin as president and Paul Dayal as secretary. The Mahasabha began advocating the idea of a Jharkhand state in the [[Bihar Legislative Assembly]] in June 1938. At the Mahasabha's second annual session in [[Ranchi]] in January 1939, [[Jaipal Singh Munda]] was elected president. Following his election, the Mahasabha secured notable victories in the 1939 District Board elections, winning twenty seats in [[Singhbhum district|Singhbhum]] and sixteen in [[Ranchi district|Ranchi]]. To support its political agenda and mobilization efforts beyond Ranchi and Singhbhum, the Mahasabha began publishing materials such as "Adivasi" and "Adivasi Sakam".{{efn|The journal ''Adivasi'' was first published by the Unnati Samaj in 1932 from Ranchi and paused after its 8th edition in 1934. After the formation of the Adivasi Mahasabha in May 1938, it resumed with the 9th edition in September 1938.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Sharma | first=A.P. | title=Descheduling of the Christian tribes in Chotanagpur | journal=Social Change | volume=21 | issue=4 | date=1991 | issn=0049-0857 | doi=10.1177/0049085719910407 | pages=57–76 | url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0049085719910407 | access-date=September 16, 2025| url-access=subscription }}</ref> ''Adivasi Sakam'', founded and edited by Jaipal Singh, was first published in July 1940 from Jamshedpur.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Tewari | first=Saagar | title=Framing the Fifth Schedule: Tribal agency and the making of the Indian Constitution (1937–1950) | journal=Modern Asian Studies | publisher=Cambridge University Press (CUP) | volume=56 | issue=5 | year=2022 | issn=0026-749X | doi=10.1017/s0026749x21000779 | doi-access=free | pages=1556–1594 | url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/E1D3B7C94989412132E200A153633C65/S0026749X21000779a.pdf/div-class-title-framing-the-fifth-schedule-tribal-agency-and-the-making-of-the-indian-constitution-1937-1950-div.pdf | access-date=September 16, 2025}}</ref>}}

However, dissatisfaction with Christian influence in the Mahasabha led to a split in July 1939, when Theble Oraon founded the ''Sanatan Adivasi Mahasabha'' to represent traditionalist, non-Christian tribals aligned with the [[Nationalist Movements in India|nationalist movement]]. At the Ramgarh session of Congress in 1940, Munda discussed with [[Subhas Chandra Bose|Subash Chandra Bose]] regarding Jharkhand state. Amid rejection of Jharkhand statehood demand from influential political leaders and growing internal disagreements, the Mahasabha's performance declined in the [[1946 Indian provincial elections|1946 Bihar Assembly elections]], securing only three seats, with Jaipal Singh defeated by Congress candidate Dr. P. C. Mitra. However, in the [[1946 Indian Constituent Assembly election|1946 Constituent Assembly elections]], Jaipal Singh was elected to represent the tribal population during the drafting of the [[Constitution of India]] and, as a member of the Tribal Sub-Committee, advocated for tribal interests in the Assembly. In 1947, internal debates emerged within the Mahasabha regarding the inclusion of non-tribal populations, since tribals accounted less than half of the Chotanagpur population, although no consensus was reached. Eventually, at its session held in Ranchi on 5 March 1949, the Mahasabha was reorganized as the Jharkhand Party, with Jaipal Singh as president and Julius Tigga as secretary. Following [[Indian independence movement|India's independence]] on 15 August 1947 and the adoption of the Constitution on 26 November 1949, which provided [[Reservation in India|reserved political representation]] in tribal-concentrated regions, the Jharkhand Party was formally launched to the public on 1 January 1950 in [[Jamshedpur]], shifting from a tribal-centric organization to a broader regional movement advocating for a separate Jharkhand state.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rana |first=L. N. |date=1996 |title=Political Consciousness in Jharkhand, 1900-1947 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44133351 |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume=57 |pages=467–484 |jstor=44133351 |issn=2249-1937}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rana |first=L.N. |date=1992 |title=The Adivasi Mahasabha (1938-1949): Launching Pad of the Jharkhand Movement |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44142817 |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume=53 |pages=397–405 |jstor=44142817 |issn=2249-1937}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sharma |first=A. P. |date=1988-06-01 |title=The Jharkhand movement: A critique |url=https://doi.org/10.1177/0049085719880203 |journal=Social Change |language=EN |volume=18 |issue=2 |pages=59–82 |doi=10.1177/0049085719880203 |issn=0049-0857|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

===Post-Independence===
{{Prose|section|date=December 2024}}
The Jharkhand Party participated in the [[1952 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1952 election]] and won 34 seats in the Bihar Legislative Assembly and become the main opposition party.<ref name=a/> In 1955, the Jharkhand Party submitted a memorandum for the creation of separate state to the [[States Reorganization Commission]], but the demand was not accepted because the region had many languages and tribal groups were in the minority.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OEeHEAAAQBAJ&pg=PT251|title=Sensex of Regional Parties|publisher=Prabhat Prakashan|author=Aaku Srivastava|page=251|year=2022|isbn=978-9355212368}}</ref> In [[1957 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1957]] and [[1962 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1962]] Legislative Assembly election, the winning candidates of the party reduced to 31 and 20 in subsequent elections.

Jaipal Singh was disappointed by the declining popularity of his party and rejection of its demand for a separate Jharkhand state.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nKqF_AgDd4gC&q=Small+States+Syndrome+in+India+Jharkhand&pg=PA118|title=Small States Syndrome in India|isbn=9788170226918|last1=Kumāra|first1=Braja Bihārī|year=1998|publisher=Concept Publishing Company }}</ref> In 1963 the Jharkhand Party merged with [[Indian National Congress]].<ref name="a" /> The merger was quite unpopular within the party ranks, and a number of splinter groups were formed, including the [[All India Jharkhand Party]], the [[Hul Jharkhand Party]], and [[Veer Birsa Dal]].

In 1967, [[Niral Enem Horo|N.E. Horo]] became an MLA of the Jharkhand Party from Kolibera by election.

In 1971, the Jharkhand Party was reorganized by [[Bagun Sumbrai|Bagun Sumrai]], who was elected president. Horo became general secretary of the party.

In 1975, N.E. Horo was elected president of the party and Noren Hansda was elected general secretary.

In 1990, N.E. Horo was elected president, working president Lal Ranvijay Nath Sahdeo, Ashok Bhagat General Secretary in byniel conference.

On 8 January 2009, Jharkhand Party candidate Raja Peter defeated sitting [[Chief Minister of Jharkhand]], [[Shibu Soren]] by over 9,000 votes in presidency of [[Anosh Ekka]] and Shri [[Ashok Kumar Bhagat]]-Principal General Secretary.<ref name="Jharkhand CM Shibu Sores loses in by-election">{{cite news|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/jharkhand-cm-shibu-sores-loses-in-byelection/82241-3.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522132740/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/jharkhand-cm-shibu-sores-loses-in-byelection/82241-3.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 May 2011|title=Jharkhand CM Shibu Sores loses in by-election|date=8 January 2009|publisher=CNN-IBN|access-date=2009-01-08}}</ref>

==Splinter groups==
{{See also|Political parties in Jharkhand}}
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2025}}
The Jharkhand Party was fragmented into several splinter groups, including more then nine during 1967–1972, after its merger into the [[Indian National Congress]].<ref>{{cite web|title= Election Results - Full Statistical Reports |url=https://www.eci.gov.in/statistical-reports }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rana |first=L.N. |date=1991 |title=The Congress - Jharkhand Merger (1963) and the Separatist Movement in Tribal Bihar |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44142668 |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume=52 |pages=634–642 |jstor=44142668 |issn=2249-1937}}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last1=Ambagudia | first1=Jagannath | last2=Xaxa | first2=Virginius | title=Handbook of Tribal Politics in India | publisher=SAGE Publications Pvt Ltd | publication-place=B1/I-1 Mohan Cooperative Industrial Area, Mathura Road New Delhi 110 044 | date=2021 | isbn=978-93-5388-458-1 | doi=10.4135/9789353884581.n4 | url=https://sk.sagepub.com/books/handbook-of-tribal-politics-in-india | access-date=2025-09-26 | page=}}</ref>

{|class="wikitable"
!colspan="2"|Party !! Abbr. !! Election Symbol !! Founded !! Founder/Leader !! Note
|- style="background:#eee;"
|{{Full party name with color|Jharkhand Party}} || JKP || [[File:Indian Election Symbol Cock.png|50px]]|| {{date|5 March 1949}} || [[Jaipal Singh Munda]] || Merged with [[Indian National Congress]] ({{date|20 June 1963}})
|-
|{{Full party name with color|All India Jharkhand Party}} {{Tooltip|(i)|Ad-hoc committee}} || AIJP || || {{date|21 June 1963}} || Lal Hari Nath Sahdeo || rowspan="2"|United with presidentship A.K. Lakra ({{date|5 April 1966}}); later split back into three groups
|-
|{{Full party name with color|All India Jharkhand Party}} (ii)|| AIJP || || 1965 || Paul Dayal
|-
|{{Full party name with color|All India Jharkhand Party}} (iii) || AIJP || || 1965 || A.K. Lakra ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Birsa Seva Dal}} || BSD || || 1967 || Lalit Kumar Kujur ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|All India Jharkhand Party}} (iv) || AIJP || || {{date|28 December 1967}} || Ratnakar Naik ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Bihar Prant Hul Jharkhand Party}} || BPHJ || || {{date|28 December 1968}} || Justin Richard ||
|-
|{{Party color cell|Jharkhand Anushilan Party}} ||[[Jharkhand Anushilan Party|Jharkhand Party (Aditya)]] || JKP(A) || || 1968 || Aditya Kisku || Later renamed to [[Jharkhand Anushilan Party]]
|-
|{{Full party name with color|All India Jharkhand Party}} (iv) || AIJP || || {{date|19 May 1968}} || [[David Munzni]]||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Jharkhand Party (Horo)}} (Horo) || JKP(H) || || 1970 || [[Niral Enem Horo]] ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|All India Jharkhand Party}} (v) || AIJP || || 1970 || [[Bagun Sumbrai]]||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Progressive Hul Jharkhand Party}} || PHJP || || 1972 || || Split of BPHJ
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Kolhan Raksha Sangh}} || KRS || || {{date|31 October 1977}} || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}} || JMM || [[File:Indian Election Symbol Bow And Arrow.svg|50px]]|| {{date|31 October 1977}} || [[Shibu Soren]] ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Jharkhand Kranti Dal}} || JKD || || 1980 || ||
|-
|{{party color cell|All Jharkhand Students Union}}||[[All Jharkhand Students Union|All India Jharkhand Students Union]] || AJSU || [[File:Indian Election Symbol Banana.svg|50px]]|| {{date|22 June 1986}} || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Jharkhand Co-ordination Committee}} || JCC || || 1987 || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Jharkhand Liberation Front}} || JLF || || 1989 || [[Salkhan Murmu]] ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Hul Jharkhand Party}} || HJP || || 1989 || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Jharkhand Party (Naren)}} (Naren) || JKP(N) || || 1990 || [[Naren Hansda]] ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|United Jharkhand Party}} || UJP || || {{date|20 January 1991}} || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Hul Jharkhand Kranti Dal}} || HJKD || || {{date|5 April 1991}} || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Chhotanagpur Front}}||CF || || || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Chhotanagpur Plateau Praja Parishad}} || CPPP || || || ||
|-
|{{Full party name with color|Krantikari Mukti Morcha}} ||KMM || || || ||
|}

==Electoral performance==
===Legislative Assembly election results===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white" |Election Year
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white;" |Party
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white" | Seats contested
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white" | Seats won
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white" | +/- seats
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white" | Overall Votes
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white" | Percentage of votes
!style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Mukti Morcha}};color:white" | {{Abbr|Ref|References}}
|-
|[[1952 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1952]]
|JKP
|53
|32
|–
|765,272
|8.01
|<ref>{{cite report|title=Statistical Report on General Election, 1952 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar |publisher=Election Commission of India |location=New Delhi |url=https://ceobihar.nic.in/BiharElection/Statistical%20Report/1951.pdf |page=13}}</ref>
|-
|[[1957 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1957]]
|
|70
|31
|{{decrease}} 1
|749,021
|7.08
|<ref>{{cite report|title=Statistical Report on General Election, 1957 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar |publisher=Election Commission of India |location=New Delhi |url=https://ceobihar.nic.in/biharelection/statistical%20report/1957.pdf |page=12}}</ref>
|-
|[[1962 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1962]]
|
|75
|20
| {{Decrease}} 11
|432,643
|4.39
|<ref>{{cite report|title=Statistical Report on General Election, 1962 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar |publisher=Election Commission of India |location=New Delhi |url=https://ceobihar.nic.in/BiharElection/Statistical%20Report/1962.pdf |page=12}}</ref>
|-
||[[1972 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1972]]
|JKD
|42
|1
| {{Decrease}}
|90,717
|0.53
|<ref>{{cite report|title=Statistical Report on General Election, 1972 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar |publisher=Election Commission of India |location=New Delhi |url=https://ceobihar.nic.in/BiharElection/Statistical%20Report/1972.pdf |page=12}}</ref>
|-
|[[1977 Bihar Legislative Assembly election|1977]]
|JKD
|31
|2
|
|72,303
|0.42
|
<ref>{{cite report|title=Statistical Report on General Election, 1977 to the Legislative Assembly of Bihar |publisher=Election Commission of India |location=New Delhi |url=https://ceobihar.nic.in/BiharElection/Statistical%20Report/1977.pdf |page=12}}</ref>
|}

==Working committee==
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2025}}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Party}}; color:white" | S.No.
! style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Party}}; color:white" | Name
! style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Party}}; color:white" | Designation
|-
!1.
| [[Anosh Ekka]]
| National President
|-
!2.
| Ajit Kumar
| Executive President
|-
!3.
| Ashok Kumar Bhagat
| Principal General Secretary
|-
!4.
| Kiran Kumar Aind
| Executive President
|-
|}

== List of presidents ==
{{Unreferenced section|date=June 2025}}
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: center;"
|-
! style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Party}};color:white" | No.
! style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Party}};color:white" | Presidents
! style="background-color:{{party color|Jharkhand Party}};color:white" | Term in Office
|-
!1.
|[[Jaipal Singh Munda]]<br>{{small|(1903–1970)}}
|1949–1963
|-
! colspan=3|Merged into [[Indian National Congress|INC]], splinted into groups
|-
!2.
|[[Bagun Sumbrai]]<br>{{small|(1924–2018)}}
|1971–1975
|-
!3.
|[[Niral Enem Horo]]<br>{{small|(1925–2008)}}
|1975–2005
|-
!4.
|'''[[Anosh Ekka]]'''<br>{{small|(born 1983)}}
|'''2005–Incumbent'''
|-
|}

==References==
===Footnotes===
{{notelist}}

===Sources===
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite journal |last=Rana |first=L.N. |date=1992 |title=The Adivasi Mahasabha (1938-1949): Launching Pad of the Jharkhand Movement |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44142817 |journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress |volume=53 |pages=397–405 |jstor=44142817 |issn=2249-1937}}
{{Indian political parties}}

[[Category:Political parties established in 1949]]
[[Category:Political parties in Jharkhand]]
[[Category:1949 establishments in India]]

Jharkhand Party - Revision history

CleanupBot at 05:09, 22 March 2026