Ranchi (Jharkhand) [India], August 5 (ANI): Former Jharkhand Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Champai Soren broke down while paying his last respects to Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) founder and former Chief Minister Shibu Soren at the latter’s residence on Tuesday.
Veteran tribal leader Shibu Soren passed away on Sunday, August 4, at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in New Delhi following a prolonged illness. He was 81.
The last rites of the JMM patriarch will be performed later in the day at his native village, Nemra, in Jharkhand’s Ramgarh district.
Leaders from across the political spectrum have paid tribute to the late leader, recalling his decades-long contribution to Jharkhand’s political landscape and his unwavering commitment to tribal rights.
Earlier in the day, a large number of people gathered at the residence of the former Chief Minister to offer their final respects.
Born on January 11, 1944, in Nemra village, Ramgarh district, Shibu Soren belonged to a modest Santhal Adivasi farming family. His father, Shobaran Soren, was a vocal opponent of local zamindars (landlords) and was murdered at their hands when Shibu was just a boy. This injustice instilled in him a burning resolve to fight for Adivasi rights, land, and dignity.
Soren’s political journey spanned over four decades, marked by numerous highs and challenges. He was the founder of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, co-founded JMM in 1972 with AK Roy and Binod Bihari Mahato to advocate for a separate tribal state.
He served three terms as Chief Minister, including one for just 10 days in March 2005 and was elected to the Lok Sabha eight times and the Rajya Sabha three times. He held the Coal Minister portfolio in the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government.
Soren’s rise to fame came in the 1970s with his campaigns against the exploitative landlords and moneylenders. He became a tribal icon fighting against injustice, organising agitations to reclaim tribal lands.
His fight for the tribal community is the reason why JMM remains the most popular party in Jharkhand. Shibu Soren was a champion of tribal rights, land, forest, and livelihood.
He was known for his unwavering dedication to the people and his passion for empowering tribal communities, the poor, and the downtrodden. His contributions include the Jharkhand Statehood Movement, which played a key role in the formation of Jharkhand as a separate state in 2000.
His dreams of a separate identity for Jharkhand people came into fruition in 2000 when a new state was created.
Soren has to spend a month in jail after an arrest warrant was issued against him in connection with the 1975 Chirudih massacre case, in which he was named the main accused in the killing of 11 people. Later, a court in March 2008 absolved him of all charges. However, his legal woes did not end there.
In 2006, he was convicted in the 1994 murder case of his private secretary, Shashi Nath Jha, leading to a life sentence, though he was later acquitted. He faced other criminal charges, including allegations of inciting violence, but was cleared in significant cases by 2010.
Despite these cases, Soren remained a towering figure in the state and the nation’s politics. In April 2025, he passed the JMM presidency to his son, Hemant Soren, the current Jharkhand Chief Minister.
Describing him as “a strong voice for the tribal community” whose contribution to Jharkhand’s formation “will always be remembered,” Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday paid heartfelt tribute to late Shibu Soren, the veteran Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader who passed away this morning in the national capital. (ANI)
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