Ranchi: Dishom guru and JMM’s patriarch Shibu Soren was conferred the Padma Bhushan posthumously at a ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan here on Tuesday evening.His wife, Rupi Soren, received the honour from President Droupadi Murmu in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union home minister Amit Shah and other dignitaries.Shibu Soren’s elder daughter, Anjali Soren, and daughter-in-law and Gandey MLA Kalpana Soren were also present at the ceremony.Born on Jan 11, 1944, in Nemra village of Ramgarh district, Shibu lost his father to a murder committed by moneylenders when he was just 13 years old. The incident shaped his early activism against exploitative lending practices and laid the foundation for his lifelong struggle for the rights of tribals and other marginalised communities.A key architect of the Jharkhand movement, Shibu played a pivotal role in the creation of the state and emerged as one of its tallest political leaders. He served three terms as chief minister and represented the Dumka Lok Sabha constituency eight times.Shibu passed away at the age of 81 in August 2025 after a prolonged illness.The conferring of the Padma Bhushan was widely welcomed by JMM supporters, with several political functionaries cutting across party lines hailing the recognition.JMM general secretary Vinod Pandey said Guruji was one of the principal architects of the Jharkhand statehood movement. “The honour is a recognition of the struggles of the people of Jharkhand and the millions associated with the movement for a separate state,” he said.JMM Rajya Sabha MP Mahua Maji termed it a historic day for Jharkhand.
