Rahul Gandhi has taken serious objection to the BJP describing the Adivasis as “Vanvasis” and termed it as a “perverted logic” to make sure the original inhabitants of the land are confined to the jungles.
On the second day of his two-day tour to Wayanad after being reinstated as a Lok Sabha member, Rahul on Sunday told a gathering of a large number of Adivasis from the hill district in Kerala that the Congress would never accept the BJP’s nomenclature, Vanvasi, as it distorts the tribal people’s history, tradition and relationship with the country.
“We say Adivasi and the other side (the BJP) says Vanvasi. There is a perverted logic behind the word Vanvasi. The word Vanvasi denies that you were the original owners of India and it also restricts you to the jungles,” he said in his address following the inauguration of a high-capacity power line sponsored by his MPLAD funds at the District Cancer Centre at the Government Tribal Speciality Hospital in Nalloornad.
“The idea behind the word Vanvasi is that you belong in the jungle and you should never leave the jungle. And this is simply not acceptable to us. We do not accept this word. This word is a distortion of your history. It is a distortion of your tradition, and it is an attack on your relationship with this country. For us you are Adivasis and we can learn from you,” he said.
He drew upon the long-held description of Adivasis as the original inhabitants and owners of this land. “Adivasi means a particular wisdom, a particular understanding of the environment of the earth we live in, a particular relationship with the planet we live on.”
“The word Adivasi also respects and accepts the fact that our tribal brothers and sisters were the original owners of this country and also implies that they should be given rights on the land, on the forest and should be allowed an imagination to do whatever they want,” he added.
Rahul noted how the country can learn from Adivasis on how to protect the environment that has already faced the brunt over the years.
“Today the word environment has become fashionable. For a few hundred years modern society has been destroying the environment (by) burning forests (and) creating pollution. Now suddenly the word environmental protection has come,” he said, adding that the Adivasis have been protecting the environment for thousands of years.
“We can learn from your history, your tradition, and from your way of life. Not just about the environment, but how to deal with each other and how to respect each other,” Rahul added.
The Congress leader who had addressed a public meeting in Kalpetta, the district headquarters, on Saturday, thanked the Left parties for rallying for him after he was disqualified.
“I have a relationship with the people of Wayanad regardless of which party they belong to. Of course, we have ideological differences with the Left. But when I was disqualified, the entire Wayanad supported me. And I consider the entire Wayanad to be part of my family,” he said, specifically thanking the Left parties.
