Binod Bihari Mahato
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Binod Bihari Mahato (23 September 1923 – 18 December 1991) was an advocate and politician. He founded
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (; ) is a political party in the Indian state of Jharkhand, founded by Binod Bihari Mahato, Shibu Soren, and A. K. Roy. Hemant Soren is the president of the JMM. JMM is also an influential political party in the state ...
in 1972 and was a leader of the movement for the establishment of the separate state of
Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
. He was a member of Bihar Vidhan Sabha in 1980, 1985 and 1990; he was also a member of the
Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...
from
Giridih Giridih is headquarters of the Giridih district of Jharkhand state, India. The city of Giridih is known for its industrial and health sectors, as well as its scenery. Giridih houses the Giridih Coalfield which is one of the oldest coalfields to ...
in 1991.


Early life

Binod Bihari Mahato was born on 23 September 1923 in Badadaha village, in the Baliapur division of
Dhanbad district Dhanbad district is one of the twenty-four districts of Jharkhand States and territories of India, state, India, and Dhanbad is the administrative headquarters of this district. As of 2011, it is the second most populous district of Jharkhand ...
. He was born into the Kudmi community. His father, Mahendra Mahato, was a farmer, and his mother's name was Mandakini Devi. His primary education took place in Baliapur; he attended Jharia D.A.V. for middle school and Dhanbad High English School.


Career

Mahato worked as a teacher, and later, got a job as a clerk in
Dhanbad Dhanbad is the second-most populated city in the Indian state of Jharkhand after Jamshedpur and a major financial hub of Jharkhand. In terms of economy, Dhanbad has the largest economy in the state of Jharkhand and it is often referred to as th ...
before deciding to become a lawyer. He studied for the Intermediate Certificate at P.K. Ray Memorial College. He graduated from Ranchi College, and received a law degree from Patna Law College. He began to practise as a lawyer in Dhanbad in 1956. He fought cases for people who were displaced because of the
Bokaro Steel Plant Bokaro Steel Plant (BSL) is located in the Bokaro district of Jharkhand. It is the fourth integrated public sector steel plant in India built with Soviet technology. It is the second largest steel plant in India after Bhilai Steel Plant and 3 ...
, Bharat Coking Coal Limited, Central Coalfields, Panchet Dam, Maithon Dam and other developments. Mahato ran for election in Jharia in 1952 but was unsuccessful. In 1971, he ran in the Dhanbad Loksabha election for the
Communist Party of India The Communist Party of India (CPI) is a political party in India. The CPI considers the Foundation of the Communist Party of India, December 26, 1925 Cawnpore (Kanpur) conference as its foundation date. Between 1946 and 1951, the CPI led m ...
and came second. He was a member of
Vidhan Sabha The State Legislative Assembly, also known as the Vidhan Sabha or the Saasana Sabha, is a legislative body in each of the states and certain union territories of India. Members of the legislative assembly are often directly elected to serve fiv ...
and represented Tundi from 1980 to 1985; he later represented Sindri and Tundi in 1990, before becoming a member of Lok Sabha and representing
Giridih Giridih is headquarters of the Giridih district of Jharkhand state, India. The city of Giridih is known for its industrial and health sectors, as well as its scenery. Giridih houses the Giridih Coalfield which is one of the oldest coalfields to ...
in May 1991.


Personal life

He married Fulmani Devi. They had two daughters, Chandrawati Devi and Tarawati Devi, and five sons: Raj Kishore Mahato, Nil Kamal Mahato, Chandra Shekhar Mahato, Pradeep Kumar Mahato, and Ashok Kumar Mahato.


Culture and sports

Mahato loved Jharkhand's culture. He organised competitions to promote the folk dances of Jharkhand and participated in festivals such as Gohal Puja, Tusu Parab, Jitiya, Karam Parab, Sohrai and Manasa Puja. He worked to promote the languages of Jharkhand, especially Kudmali/Kurmali, the language of Kudmi Mahato and encouraged Laxmikant Mahato, the writer of ''Kudmali Sahitya and Vyakran'', to promote Kurmali. The writer and poet of Khortha, Srinivas Punari, was his friend. Due to these efforts, the study of Kurmali started at Ranchi University.


Education

Mahato advocated for education. He created the slogan "Padho and Lado". He also donated money to help establish several schools and colleges.


Shivaji Samaj

Due to his background, Mahato met several Kudmi in his professional work. Kudmi have their own culture and rituals, which were often performed without
Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...
. In those days Brahmincal practices were entering into Kudmi culture. Some were trying to make Kudmi Khatriya by giving them janeu, and some were suggesting Kudmi get dikhya from Brahmin. Some were saying to classify Kudmi as
Vaishya Vaishya (Sanskrit: वैश्य, ''vaiśya'') is one of the four varnas of the Vedic Hindu social order in India. Vaishyas are classed third in the order of Varna hierarchy. The occupation of Vaishyas consists mainly of agriculture, takin ...
. Many Kudmi were starting practices such as Tilak and Dahej which were not part of Kudmi custom, and alcoholism was increasing. To solve these problems faced by Kudmi, Mahato started an organisation called Shivaji Samaj, which worked to protect Kudmi from money-lenders and to fight social evils, in 1967. Shivaji Samaj organised rallies for backward castes and Sri Karpuri Thakur's rally for backward castes. Shivaji Samaj worked to promote the language, festival and culture of Kudmi. The reason Mahato called the organisation Shivaji Samaj was that he admired Chhatrapati Shivaji, believing that Shivaji was Kudmi. Eventually, Shivaji Samaj became the backbone of the Jharkhand movement. However, some people called Shivaji Samaj a terrorist organisation, and several cases were lodged against its leaders.


Jharkhand Mukti Morcha

Binod Bihari Mahato was a member of the Communist Party for 25 years. He thought that the
Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
and Jan Sangh were a party for feudalism and capitalism and not for
Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...
castes; in his view, it would be difficult to fight for Dalit as a member of these parties. As a result, he created
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (; ) is a political party in the Indian state of Jharkhand, founded by Binod Bihari Mahato, Shibu Soren, and A. K. Roy. Hemant Soren is the president of the JMM. JMM is also an influential political party in the state ...
. Under its banner, several protests took place demanding that
Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
become a separate state. Mahato was a member of the Jharkhand Coordination Committee (JCC) along with Bindheswari Prasad Keshri, Sanjay Bosu Mullick, Santosh Rana, and Surya Singh Besra. The committee tried to coordinate between the different Jharkhand separatist organisations. The central government formed a committee on the Jharkhand matter in 1989, which stressed the need for greater allocation of development funds for the area.


Commemoration

* Binod Bihari Mahto Koylanchal University


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahato, Binod Bihari Jharkhand politicians Bihar MLAs 1980–1985 Bihar MLAs 1985–1990 Bihar MLAs 1990–1995 Lok Sabha members from Bihar 1923 births 1991 deaths Jharkhand Mukti Morcha politicians Communist Party of India politicians from Jharkhand