Adivasi Gram Sabhas of Bastar are Indigenous community assemblies in Chhattisgarh, India, that exercise collective self-government over territory, forests, and social life. These assemblies function as sovereign decision-making bodies, often in open defiance of state authorities and extractive projects.
| Creation date | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Topics | Democracy, Land Use, Rights, Extractivism |
| Context | Rural |
| Typology | Self-determination movement |
| Languages | Hindi |
| Thematics | Radical Democracy |
In the Bastar region, Adivasi communities govern themselves through Gram Sabhas, village assemblies that predate the modern Indian state and have been reaffirmed through customary law and collective practice. These assemblies assert authority over land, forests, and political decisions affecting community life.
Gram Sabhas function through open deliberation, consensus-building, and collective mandates, rejecting imposed leadership structures. They have repeatedly exercised veto power over mining projects, militarization, and infrastructure imposed without consent, making them sites of direct confrontation with state and corporate power.
Despite repression, displacement, and criminalization, Adivasi Gram Sabhas in Bastar remain active and resilient. They represent a living form of non-state democracy where political authority flows from the collective assembly rather than from constitutional delegation.