Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi to pay his respects to former Jharkhand Chief Minister and founding patron of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Shibu Soren, who died at the hospital on Monday at the age of 81 after a prolonged illness.
His son and current Chief Minister Heman Soren announced the death. “Respected Guru Dishom has left us all. Today, I have become empty,” he posted on X.
The JMM patriarch, who was a towering figure in Jharkhand's political landscape, was admitted to the Sri Ganga Ram Hospital in the national capital since last month with a kidney-related issue.
"Shri Shibu Soren Ji was a grassroots leader who rose through the ranks of public life with unwavering dedication to the people. He was particularly passionate about empowering tribal communities, the poor and downtrodden. Pained by his passing away. My thoughts are with his family and admirers. Spoke to Jharkhand CM Shri Hemant Soren Ji and expressed condolences. Om Shanti," PM Modi wrote on X expressing his condolence ealier today.
After paying his respects to the leader, PM Modi said his thoughts are his son CM Hemant Soren and his wife, legislator Kalpana Soren and the admirers of JMM patron.
"Went to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital to pay homage to Shri Shibu Soren Ji. Also met his family. My thoughts are with Hemant Ji, Kalpana Ji and the admirers of Shri Shibu Soren Ji," wrote PM Modi on X.
#WATCH | Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi pays tribute to former Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Shibu Soren at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.Former Jharkhand CM and JMM founder patron Shibu Soren passed away at the hospital today after a prolonged illness.
(Source: DD News) pic.twitter.com/a1Bc2YCL9X
— ANI (@ANI) August 4, 2025
Soren, the founder of JMM, was born on January 11, 1944, in Nemra village of today’s Jharkhand. Soren served as the chief minister of the state thrice, besides working as a union cabinet minister.
His political career reportedly began through grassroots activism, particularly focusing on land rights for tribals and opposition to exploitative practices by landlords.
Kurmi leader Binod Bihari Mahto ran a social reform organisation called the Shivaji Samaj, which functioned in the 1960s and 1970s. The organisation allied with Santhals, led by Shibu Soren, who were also fighting for land rights. This alliance formally came into being in 1973 and was known as the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM).
In 1972, Shibu, along with late Mahato and late A K Roy, founded JMM to launch a movement for a separate state.
Together, they stepped headlong into social work in the area, gaining ground in South Bihar.
Soren emerged as one of the tallest leaders of the movement, uniting tribals against illegal mining and spearheading protests all through the 1970s amid the political tumult in the rest of the country. Leftist support for the JMM ended when the party entered into an electoral alliance with the Congress for the 1980 Assembly polls in Bihar. It officially launched as a separate political party in 1984.
Soren was also elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1998, 2002, and again in 2020. Since October 2024, he had been serving as a member of the Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
On November 15, 2000, Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar, fulfilling a long-standing demand for a separate state that could focus on tribal welfare and the development of its abundant mineral resources.
At the beginning of this year, Soren passed the mantle of the JMM leadership to his son Hemant this year. Party insiders said Shibu, who had moved away from the public in the past few years, stepped down from his role due to his health issues and advancing age.
Known as "Guruji" among his supporters, Soren's influence extended beyond his terms as Chief Minister, with his son, Hemant Soren, currently holding the office.
However, his political journey was not without controversy.
In 2010, Soren was acquitted by a local court in a 36-year-old murder case for lack of evidence.
The case related to an FIR filed on April 15, 1974, by a person named Bahadur Singh, who had accused Soren of leading a group that killed two persons, Khirodar Singh and Chundi Singh, following the slaughter of a goat at Kudko village under Pirtand police station in Giridih district.
He was earlier acquitted in the 1975 Chirrudih massacre case in which 19 persons were killed in Chirudih village of Jamtara district on January 23, 1975, by a mob.
Soren was also earlier acquitted in the Shashinath Jha murder case on August 22, 2007, by the Delhi High Court. But he spent nine months in Tihar jail. Jha was his secretary, who was abducted from Dhaula Kuan in New Delhi in 1994.
Soren also survived an assassination attempt in June 2007 when explosives were hurled at his convoy near Deoghar while he was being escorted to jail. He led the JMM as its president for 38 years until April 2025.
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