Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited a Jaher Than — a sacred grove central to Santhal and Ho tribal worship — in Paharpur alongside President Draupadi Murmu on Saturday, 20 June 2026, in a high-profile gesture of cultural solidarity with India's tribal communities.

Context

Writing in the Ol Chiki script used by the Santhal community, PM Modi shared that he had visited the Jaher Than (sacred grove) in the Paharpur area alongside the President and paid homage at the site. He noted that he offered prayers at the sacred grove, describing the experience with reverence. The post, composed entirely in the Santhal language, is itself a symbolic acknowledgement of the community's distinct linguistic identity.

Policy Backdrop

The visit comes against the backdrop of the BJP-led government's sustained outreach to tribal constituencies. In 2021, the Government of India instituted Janjatiya Gaurav Divas on 15 November — the birth anniversary of tribal freedom fighter Birsa Munda — to honour tribal heritage across the country. President Murmu, who took office in 2022 as India's first President from a tribal community, belongs to the Santhal group, making her presence at a Santhal sacred site particularly resonant.

The Jaher Than is not merely a religious site but the social and spiritual nucleus of Santhal and Ho community life, where collective rituals, dispute resolution, and seasonal festivals converge. The Santhal tribe is one of India's largest Scheduled Tribe groups, concentrated in Jharkhand, Odisha, and West Bengal.

Stakeholders and Impact

The Santhal and Ho communities, whose sacred grove traditions are central to their Austroasiatic cultural identity, stand as the primary stakeholders of this symbolic visit. For these communities, a prime ministerial presence at a Jaher Than carries weight beyond politics — it signals state recognition of indigenous spiritual practices that have historically been marginalised in mainstream discourse.

High-level visits to sacred tribal sites in Jharkhand and Odisha have become a recurring feature of the ruling coalition's cultural outreach, combining welfare delivery in tribal belts with visible participation in indigenous rituals. Civil society groups working on tribal rights have long sought formal protection frameworks for Jaher Thans, which face encroachment pressures.

What's Next

Observers will watch for any follow-up policy announcements on the documentation, legal protection, or heritage listing of sacred groves following the visit. Parliamentary references to tribal cultural preservation during upcoming sessions are also possible. The visit may also energise grassroots outreach efforts in Jharkhand, a state with a substantial tribal electorate and ongoing political competition across party lines.