History of Jharkhand
Following the Mughal decline, the region came under the control of local rulers from the Chero caste and others, before its subjugation by the British East India Company in the late 18th century, succeeded by the British Raj from the mid-19th century, both encountering much local resistance.
Stone tools and microliths from the Mesolithic and Neolithic periods have been discovered in the Chota Nagpur Plateau region.
[5] A group of megaliths proven to date back to beyond 3000 BCE was also found at Barkagaon, about 25 km from Hazaribagh at Punkri Barwadih.
[2] In the Kabra-Kala mound, at the confluence of the Son and North Koel rivers in Palamu district, various objects have been found which date from the Neolithic to the medieval period.
These conquered states fell under the hegemony of the Maurya empire during Ashoka's expansionist reign (c. 232 BCE).
[14] Samudragupta, while marching through the present-day Chota Nagpur region (North and South), directed the first attack against the kingdom of Dakshina Kosala in the Mahanadi valley.
Akbar was informed of a rebel Afghan sardar, Junaid Kararani, whose hideout was Chota Nagpur.
Akbar's army defeated the king and a sum of rupees six thousand was fixed as its annual revenue payable to the Mughals.
[19] By the advent of the reign of Emperor Jahangir, king Durjan Shah had come to power in Chota Nagpur.
Jahangir's intentions were two-pronged: defeat Durjan Shah and acquire the diamonds found in the Sankh River.
In 1615 AD, Ibrahim Khan marched against Khukhra and defeated Durjan Shah, took him as a captive to Patna, and was finally imprisoned in the Gwalior fort.
Ultimately, Jahangir granted his release after realising Sal's skill of distinguishing real diamonds.
However, it was during the reign of King Medini Ray (1658–1674), who ruled from 1658 to 1674 in Palamau, the old fort was rebuilt into a defensive structure.
[23] Following the death of Medini Ray, there was rivalry within the royal family of the Chero dynasty which ultimately led to its downfall; this was engineered by the ministers and advisers in the court.
[24] Daud Khan, who launched his invasion on 3 April 1660 from Patna, attacked south of Gaya district and finally arrived at the Palamu forts on 9 December 1660.
The terms of surrender and payment of tribute were not acceptable to the Cheros; Daud Khan apparently wanted complete conversion of the Hindus to Islam.
After the Treaty of Allahabad, this region, along with the rest of Suba Bengal, came under the rule of East India Company.
The region, rich in natural resources and forest wealth, became an important area for British economic interests.
Mahatma Gandhi,[34] Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Sarojini Naidu, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, Acharya J.B. Kripalani, Industrialist Jamnalal Bajaj and other leaders[35] of Indian freedom movement attended the Ramgarh session.
In 1955, Jharkhand Party, led by Jaipal Singh Munda, submitted a memorandum to States Reorganization Commission for Jharkhand state for tribals, but it was rejected because the region had different languages, the tribals were in minority, Hindustani was majority language and adverse effect on economy of Bihar.
In 1972, Binod Bihari Mahato, Shibu Soren and A. K. Roy founded Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).
Keshri, Binod Bihari Mahato, Santosh Rana, and Suraj Singh Besra started a fresh initiative in the matter.
In July 1988, Bharatiya Janata party in the leadership of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Lal Krishna Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi decided to demand separate state Vanachal composed of forest region of South Bihar in Jamshedpur.
The Chota Nagpur and Santal Pargana development board was constituted under the chairmanship of then Chief Minister of Bihar under the provision of the fifth schedule in 1972.
AJSU introduced elements of violence in the movement and called for a boycott of the election while JMM opposed it.
Jharkhand Area Autonomous Council Bill passed in Bihar legislative assembly in December 1994.
The council had the power to recommend legislation to the Assembly through the state government and to frame bylaws and regulations.
On that day the committee, under the leadership of Justice Shahdeo called for Jharkhand Bandh and organised a protest march.
Finally, with the support from both RJD and Congress, the ruling coalition at the Centre led by the BJP which had made statehood a policy plank in the region in several previous elections, cleared the Bihar Reorganisation Act in the monsoon session of the Parliament in 2000, thus paving the way for the creation of a separate Vanachal state comprising Chota Nagpur Division and Santhal Pargana Division of South Bihar.
