Shibu Soren, JMM Founder and Former Jharkhand CM, Passes Away at 81

Veteran politician and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) founder Shibu Soren passed away today at the age of 81 after a prolonged illness. He breathed his last at Delhi’s Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, where he had been undergoing treatment for kidney-related complications.

The former Union Minister and three-time Chief Minister of Jharkhand had been on life support for nearly a month following a stroke suffered about six weeks ago. He was admitted to the hospital in the last week of June and had remained in critical condition since.

Confirming his father’s demise, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, who is currently in Delhi, shared an emotional tribute on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), saying:
“Respected Guruji Dishom has left us all. I’ve lost everything today.”

In an official statement, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said, “The former Union Minister was declared dead at 8:56 am today. He was suffering from kidney-related issues and had suffered a stroke. He had been on life support for the past month.”

Shibu Soren, fondly known as “Guruji” by his supporters, was a towering figure in Jharkhand politics and a key force behind the state’s tribal rights movement. He was a founder of the JMM and served as its guiding light for nearly four decades.

His political legacy includes not only being a three-time Chief Minister of Jharkhand but also serving as a Cabinet Minister in the central government. Soren played a significant role in advocating for tribal welfare and statehood for Jharkhand, which was carved out of Bihar in 2000.

Tributes have poured in from across the political spectrum, with many leaders hailing him as a stalwart of grassroots politics and a symbol of tribal assertion.