INDIA’S INDIGENOUS STRUGGLE
AUTHOR – SHRUTI VASAVE, LLM SCHOLAR AT GUJARAT NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, GANDHINAGAR. SILVASSA
BEST CITATION – SHRUTI VASAVE, INDIA’S INDIGENOUS STRUGGLE, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 5 (1) OF 2025, PG. 269-276, APIS – 3920 – 0001 & ISSN – 2583-2344.
Recognition is an individual’s identity that is asserted and granted rights based on it. Human beings have inherent rights, independent of nationality, colour, gender, religion, or other characteristics. Recognition shapes an individual’s identity and the privileges that come with it. In society, identity is extremely important for a variety of reasons, and being recognised and acknowledged by others is as important. This recognition helps to promote several factors, including social inclusion. Individual rights are also internationally recognised. However, because of their lack of status as Indigenous in their native country, Indian Indigenous people face difficulties in obtaining international acknowledgement of their rights. India supports the UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples’ Rights but argues that all Indians are indigenous, not just Adivasi peoples, so the declaration doesn’t apply. Also, India hasn’t agreed to the International Labor Organization Convention 169, making it tough for Adivasi people to have their internationally recognized rights, including religious freedoms, protected in India. This violates their internationally barred rights and they are barred from using the same. This also leads to differential treatment and denial of rights as compared to the other indigenous people of the world. This paper addresses the critical issue of Adivasi peoples in India lacking internationally recognized indigenous status, which has resulted in systematic neglect of their rights. This lack of recognition impedes their ability to maintain their Indigenous identity, as they are compelled to align themselves with the other people of India thereby eroding their indigenous cultural heritage. This paper addresses how Indigenous people’s absence of status affects their rights internationally and limits their legal protection. It explores how this impacted the rights not adequately acknowledged under the current framework. The paper highlights the challenges Indian indigenous face, including differential treatment and equality outlined in the UNDRIP, due to the absence of a lack of status as indigenous. The paper will commence with an introductory overview, followed by a historical exploration of the subject matter. It will then delve into a comparative analysis of indigenous status across different nations, scrutinizing India’s stance on indigenous rights within the framework of international regulations. The challenges confronting indigenous populations will also be a focal point of the research. Through case studies, it examines the need for indigenous status for Adivasi in India and analyses how this lack of status contributes to individuals facing deprivation of their rights. The paper focuses on the indigenous status of Adivasi people in India internationally
Keywords: Recognition, Indigenous, UNDRIP, Scheduled Tribes, Rights