Once upon a time, freedom hero Bhagwan Birsa Munda’s fiery slogan “abua dishom, abua raj" (our land, our rule), used against colonial British rule, fired up Jharkhand’s tribal politics of the 1970s, ’80s, and ’90s. Shibu Soren, then a young man with a flowing, sadhu-like beard, led movements like Dhan Katni to reclaim adivasi land from moneylenders.

Soren was Dishom Guru, or Guide of the Land, for Santhals and other local tribes. He was not just a politician. For Jharkhand’s tribal population, Soren was a revolutionary, a guru, and almost like a spiritual guide. He was the embodiment of their identity and aspirations, defender of their rights. A man who had no qualms about having the local drink, Haria, with his people, even as a chief minister or union minister, so deep was his connect.

But when........

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