• Source:JND
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Two activists of a tribal organisation were detained on Tuesday in the East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand after they threatened to kill self if PM Narendra Modi did not recognise Sarnaism to be a religion during his visit to Khunti, police said.

Senior Superintendent of Police Kishore Kaushal announced that two Adivasi Sengel Abhiyan (ASA) members, Pritivi Murmu and Vikram Hembram, had been placed in preventive custody.

Two more activists were allegedly detained by the police, according to a statement from the ASA.

It stated that Kanhuram Tudu was arrested from Gamariah in the Seraikela-Kharswan district and Chandra Mohan Mardi was detained from the Peterwar police station area in the Bokaro district.

To confirm the detentions, police in these two districts could not be reached.

Premsheela Murmu, a different ASA leader, issued similar threats on Tuesday.

Salkhan Murmu, the chief of the ASA, demanded that Sarnaism be recognised as a distinct religion, claiming that tribal people are not Muslims, Christians, or Hindus but rather worship nature.

He expressed hope that Prime Minister Modi would acknowledge the sentiments of those who revere nature and declare the existence of the "Sarna religion" on the birth anniversary of Khunti tribal leader Birsa Munda.

PM Modi will pay floral tributes to Birsa Munda at his birthplace, Ulihatu village in Khunti district on Wednesday.