From Territorial To Digital Control: Tribal Self-Governance Under The Indian Constitutional Framework
Arifa Sultana Choudhury, Assistant Professor, School of Law, Dayananda Sagar University
Nithin Rajeev, Assistant Professor, School of Law, Dayananda Sagar University
ABSTRACT
The constitutional provisions under the Fifth and Sixth Schedules, alongside Article 244 and legislations such as the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA) and the Forest Rights Act, 2006 (FRA), create a distinct governance architecture for India’s tribal regions. Central to this model are the principles of community consent, territorial autonomy, and participatory self-rule. However, the rapid expansion of digital governance mechanisms—such as Aadhaar-based welfare delivery, GIS-enabled land mapping, and algorithmic decision systems—has begun to alter the tribal- state interface. This paper explores how such digital infrastructures, while heralded as inclusive and efficient, tend to re-centralize authority, weaken Gram Sabha autonomy, and undermine the constitutional vision of self- governance. Drawing upon constitutional jurisprudence, particularly Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017), and frameworks of Indigenous data sovereignty, the paper proposes a redefinition of tribal self- determination that includes informational liberty. It argues for the institutionalization of digital Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) and community-driven data governance models in Scheduled Areas. Ultimately, it contends that the discourse on tribal justice must evolve from territorial control to digital sovereignty, ensuring that technological modernization does not erode the spirit of constitutional self-rule.
Keywords: Tribal Autonomy, Digital Governance, Informational Self- Determination, Scheduled Areas, Data Sovereignty.
