Image: News18

Sundarraj P, Dantewada deputy inspector general (DIG) of police has been put in charge of Bastar Range in south Chhattisgarh.

Kalluri has been a controversial figure and has had a running battle with civil rights activists and the media of the region. He was again in the news earlier this month after activist Bela Bhatia came under attack from a local outfit believed to be supporting the police in the fight against Maoists.

Kalluri has often been quoted telling journalists from outside the state that they were not welcome in the insurgency-hit region. Several journalists are still in jail in Chhattisgarh after being charged with complicity with Maoists. According to activists, these journalists have been framed.

Media reports state that Kalluri has been unwell for a while. In November last year, he was admitted to hospital with kidney and heart problems. An officer looked after the Bastar region while he was away on medical leave.

Top sources said this time Kalluri may not return to Bastar after he comes back from medical leave.

Related Articles:
1. "It doesn’t seem like the Chhattisgarh government is listening to the Supreme Court"
2. Chief Secretary, Chhattisgarh & IGP Bastar Summoned by NHRC
 

The post Chhattisgarh top cop Kalluri goes on medical leave, may not return to Bastar appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The crux of the apex court statement is: Money cannot compensate for land, as land is not just a source of the tribals’ livelihood but it also shapes their lifestyle. Referring to SSP, the Supreme Court said, “We will tell you now itself. You giving cash instead of land is tentatively not acceptable. That’s just not done.” These are the words of Chief Justice of India JS Khehar.

It was a winning moment for the people struggling for their right to rehabilitation in the SSP-affected area for the last 30-odd years. The Madhya Pradesh (MP) government’s wrong policies led to a situation where many oustees lost their land and livelihood, and they were left to suffer. There were fake registries in special registration package (SRP) while handing over land to the tribals.

The MP government launched SRP for the displaced persons of SSP in complete violation of the Narmada Water Dispute Tribunal Award (NWDTA) of 1987 as also the Supreme Court judgments on 2000 and 2005 in order to show that there was zero balance in the number of oustees to be resettled. The displaced persons of SSP, neglected for decades, were force to agree with the new SRP system of the MP government. The result was, since 2005, a large number of fake registries were made under SRP to show that the resettlement process has been completed.

The Jha Commission was set up in 2008 by the order of MP High Court. It has found 1,435 fake registries, in which the purchasers don’t know the buyers, and the buyers don’t know the purchasers, yet land has been shown as sold – all through middlemen, in connivance with officials.

The Jha Commission report’s 144 pages, along with 2,000 pages of annexure, after seven years of rigorous investigation, has not been taken seriously by the MP government. It has taken no action to implement its recommendations. The only action taken is registration of FIRs against innocent adivasi purchasers and sellers. A few of them were even arrested! In some cases, the police knocked at the door of adavasis at midnight to arrest them. The police have even arrested old women and pregnant woman.

All this happened despite the fact that the 144 pages report in its conclusion clearly states that middlemen and officials alone were responsible in fake registry cases. In fact, the Jha Commission report insists that SRP alone caused these fake registries.

On the basis of SRP, previously, the MP government tried to show zero balance of oustees in the submergence area, which is clearly a bluff. Thousands of families are still living in their native villages because the rehabilitation process has not ended till date and civic amenities at many resettlement and rehabilitation (R&R) sites are not suitable for living. Many cases of corruption have been found at R&R sites in the Jha Commission report.

Many adivasis want land for land, not money, yet the MP government is intimidating them by saying they will transfer money to their account. Adivasis, who have already suffered a lot, are no condition to fight again and again against the government. The recent arrest of adivasis demoralized them., but the latest Supreme Court statement in the Narmada Bachao Andolan vs Government of Madhya Pradesh case has given them hope that their many years’ struggle will not go waste.

Courtesy: Counterview

The post Money can’t compensate Land, Its a source of Tribals’ Livelihood, Shaping their Lifestyle appeared first on SabrangIndia.

NBA campaign against "illegal" sand mining

Arrested under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2015, an NBA communiqué, characterizing the government action as “repressive”, said, it all began on January 6, 2017, when the two, accompanied by several other activists, stopped a tractor, whose owner happens to be a tribal, from carrying sand, mined at the riverbed.

“The NBA activists demanded explanation from the driver as to how could he take away the riverbed sand when the Supreme Court had stayed mining in the Narmada Valley and riverbed on May 6, 2015, and the National Green Tribunal (NGT) declared it illegal”, the communiqué said, adding, “Ever since, the NBA has been helping the administration to taking steps against those involved in illegal sand mining and confiscate vehicles being used for it.”

Pointing out that despite apex court stay and NGT stay, “illegal” mining has been continuing in “gross violation of the law”, the communiqué said, “Instead of stopping illegal mining, the tractor owner drove the vehicle towards NBA activists to scare them. This forced them to file an FIR with the police against the owner.”

Two days later, on January 8, said the communiqué, the district collector’s car was found to be going for the Namami Devi Narmade campaign, claimed to be conceived by the Madhya Pradesh government to “protect” environment. “NBA workers stopped his car at Shaheed Stambh (Martyrs’ Square), asking him as to why no action was being taken against those involved in illegal mining.”

“The workers also asked the official as to why, when NBA is helping confiscate tractors involved in illegal mining, no action was taken against the culprits, who were being set free, and also why the chief minister and other officials were not speaking a word against illegal mining”, the communiqué said.

“When the officials failed to answer any questions”, claimed NBA, “the owner of the tractor, who happens to be a tribal, and against whom an FIR has been registered, was called in, and a case was registered under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 294, 323, 506, 341, 34 as also Prevention of SC/ST Atrocities Act, against Rahul Yadav and Pavan Yadav. Then, they were arrested.”

Calling the arrest a “conspiracy” against those who are fighting and raising voice against illegal sand mining in Narmada Valley, NBA said, “The arrest clearly suggests that the sand mining mafia and the Madhya Pradesh administration are hand in glove.”

It added, “The arrest also exposes the real face of the Namami Devi Narmade campaign, run by the ruling BJP. The entire campaign is being run by religious leaders, with chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan merely reaching amidst the campaign in a chopper for a speech, with little effort being made to help those adversely affected by the Narmada dam.”
 

The post Stiffling Protest: MP Tribal Rights Activists Arrested, Protesting Illegal Sand Mining appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The post Govt’s Medical Team tries to cover up deaths of Adivasi children in Malkangiri: Watch Dalit Camera’s expose appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Video Courtesy: Dalit Camera

Courtesy: India Resists

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Water cannons to tame ruckus  Image: Telehraph/Vijay Deo Jha

The Opposition's fierce protest against the Bills to bring amendments to the age-old Chotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) Act and Santhal Pargana Tenancy (SPT) Act spilled on to the capital's roads today, as the combine of the JVM-RJD-JDU and the Left held a march and staged demonstrations, inviting a showdown with police who had to use water canons and teargas shells to tame the crowd.

The Telegraph reported that, both in the assembly and on the streets the protests were loud. If the Assembly, where the Bills were passed by voice vote, witnessed utter pandemonium, outside it, the scene was no less chaotic, thanks to a mob of over 500 that laid siege to a key artery like Harmu bypass. Tomorrow, November 25, the state will witness a complete bandh called by the opposition political parties.

Over the past months, but since October 2016 particularly, the Jharkand government has been deploying force and the use of the gun to quell tribal protest in Jharkand: On Saturday October 1, 2016 a tribal agriculturist died a bloody death while protesting peacefully to save his land, and behind the killing of 5 Tribals, was the sordid story of the illegal acquisition of land by the NTPC: Hazaribagh. Sabrangindia had reported on the sinister nexus between the state police (Jharkand, a state ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party,BJP) and the Modi regime is revealed as the illegal acquisition of land by the NTPC in Barakagaon, as this acquisition has been coercively undertaken without the approval, statutorily mandated, by the Gram Sabha.

JVM chief Babulal Marandi and other party leaders during the march on Wednesday. (Prashant Mitra)

Union minister and Hazaribagh MP Jayant Sinha who came to assess the situation today at NTPC's Pankri Barwadih coal mine, Barkagaon, in the wake of the October 1 police firing on a land acquisition protest that killed five people, could not visit the site due to Section 144 of CrPC clamped in the troubled spot, but despite this, was quick to give a clean chit to the police after seeing video footage of that day. Admitting innocents became victims – three teenage students and a young tailor, whose relatives said they had no involvement in the protests, had fallen to the bullets – Jayant urged villagers not to be curious onlookers at times of trouble.

Wednesday’s agitation,  led by JVM chief Babulal Marandi, started at Argora grounds where the protesters assembled at 11.30am. Marandi was joined by party colleague Bandhu Tirkey, RJD president Gautam Rana and former RJD minister Annapurna Devi, CPI leader Bhuvneshwar Mehta and state JDU president Jaleshwar Mahto.

While JMM kept itself away from the show of Opposition unity, state Congress also turned down Marandi's request to join the march. But former Union minister Subodh Kant Sahay was present with some supporters. Around 12.30pm, the protesters started walking from Argora grounds towards Vidhan Sabha. While the administration had given permission for the agitation only at Birsa Chowk and notified the route for the march via Ashok Nagar, the protesters changed their path at the last moment and decided to head directly to Satellite Colony from Argora.
 
Barricades were already set up at Satellite Colony Chowk, Birsa Chowk and Sector 2, where over 300 policemen thwarted the protesters' attempts to move ahead towards the Assembly.Enraged, the Opposition members squatted on Harmu bypass at Satellite Colony Chowk near DPS School, around 2km from the Assembly. As the air pulsated with high-pitched slogans, the leaders delivered speeches one after the other.

"Today is a black day for democracy. Chief minister Raghubar Das wrote a script that will bring doomsday for people of Jharkhand. He has proved his loyalty towards corporate houses. The amendments have been introduced with no good interest. Once implemented, they will change the occupancy rights of tribal over land," Marandi said.

Annapurna Devi of RJD alleged that Das was pushing for the anti-tribal, anti-minority and anti-dalit agenda of the BJP through the amendments.

"Das is toeing the line of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who tried to change the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, passed by the UPA government. But Modi had to buckle down under pressure from the Opposition and the people of the country," she said.

Sahay flayed the government for using force to stop people from raising their voices.

Marandi's party colleague and MLA Pradeep Yadav, who joined the street show right after the Assembly adjourned, said the fight against the amendments would become more intense than ever.

After Yadav finished his speech, the protesters went on the rampage, trying to break through the barricades. Police used tear gas and water canons to control the frenzied crowd. They also resorted to lathi-charge in which RJD worker from Dhanbad Tarkeshwar Yadav got injured.

Around 100 protesters, including Marandi, Mahto, Tirkey and Mehta, were arrested. They were later released.

The post BJP’s Jharkand Govt Continues in Mission to Grab Tribal Lands, Opposition in Rage, Protests on Streets appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Image: Punjab Tribune

रांची के मोरहाबादी मैदान में होने वाली इस रैली के लिए आदिवासियों को पुलिस ने खूंटी में रोकने की कोशिश की और उनके साथ मारपीट की जिसके बाद आदिवासी भड़क उठे।

झारखंड पुलिस के आईजी एमएस भाटिया ने हथियारबंद आदिवासियों पर ही पुलिस पर हमला करने का आरोप लगाया है। पुलिक के मुताबिक नाराज आदिवासियों ने खूंटी के एएसपी ऑपरेशन अनुराग राज, डीएसपी हेडक्वार्टर विजय आनंद लागुनी, उनके बॉडीगार्ड और अड़की के थाना प्रभारी हरदेव प्रसाद बंधक भी बनाया।

इस दौरान हुई झड़प में डीएसपी विजय आनंद के हाथ में फ्रैक्चर आया है। उनके बॉडीगार्ड नागेंद्र शर्मा के सिर पर भी गंभीर चोट आई है। पुलिस के सात जवान घायल हुए हैं। सभी घायलों का राँची में रिम्स में इलाज चल रहा है।

घटना के बाद खूंटी में बाजार बंद है। खूंटी शहर में भी गांववालों ने जबरदस्त हंगामा किया है।

साइको जाने के लिए निकले खूंटी के डिप्टी कमिश्नर और एसपी अनीश गुप्ता को ग्रामीणों ने नहीं जाने दिया।  इस घटना के बाद इलाके में एक्स्ट्रा फोर्स लगाई गई है। रांची डीआईजी अपनी टीम के साथ मौके पर हैं।

आदिवासियों का कहना है कि रैली को फ्लॉप करने के लिए पुलिस  ने पूरा जोर लगाया और जगह-जगह आदिवासियों को रोकना और मारना-पीटना शुरू कर दिया जिसके बाद ये बवाल हुआ।
 
इसके पहले अक्टूबर में ही एसपीटी-सीएनपी एक्ट में संशोधन की मांग को लेकर धरना दे रहे आदिवासियों पर पुलिस की फायरिंग में चार ग्रामीण मारे गए थे।
 
 

The post रांची में आदिवासियों की आक्रोश रैली : पुलिस फायरिंग में एक आदिवासी की मौत appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Around a Lakh people had sat on protest at the house of Maharashtra Tribal Development Minister Vishnu Savara at Wada on Monday. The key demands raised by protesters were implementation of Forest Rights Act, work under EGS, timely salaries for Anganwadi workers, etc. People had gathered on the call of AIKS, DYFI, SFI and other Left Organisations,  ended the demonstration after assurance on Tuesday morning.  It is to be noted that thousands of Adivasi children have died due to malnutrition in Maharashtra over period of 1 year. 

In times when slogans like ‘Mera Desh Badal Raha Hai’ are echoing on television channels, news of several Adivasi children in Maharashtra dying due to malnutrition, comes to burst the bubble of ‘digital India’. Malnutrition is not a recent occurrence in the country; we have been trying to deal with the problem for decades now. The recent data from Maharashtra, specifically from the tribal communities, is enough to shock any government out of their aloof attitude towards the everyday troubles of the common people. In September during a hearing of the PIL regarding deaths of 17,000 people in the last year in tribal areas of Maharashtra, the Bombay High Court asked the state government to take immediate action.

Around 10,000 Adivasi children under the age of five have died in the last 5 months in the state. However, governments, both at the center and state, have completely ignored the issue and like many predecessor governments they too have let the problem escalate to this devastating stage. Malnutrition is the Gordian knot which requires a multi-pronged strategy to be untied. The present center and state governments are not only turning a blind eye to the deaths of the Adivasis but have also weakened the schemes which could have provided some relief to the poor and starving people. Ever since, the Modi government came to power in 2014 there has been a significant decline in the budgetary allocations for the social welfare schemes. PM Modi has been very outspoken about his abhorrence towards the MGNREGA scheme which was introduced to ensure work for the rural people. This scheme, if implemented in its spirit, has the ability to become an important tool to fight poverty and hunger. But the BJP government is dead set to weaken it. In Maharashtra, government is not providing work under this scheme. ICDS is another hot target of the BJP government’s budget cuts. A scheme which provides basic nutrition for children of the 0-6 age group should be encouraged in a country which struggling to feed its children. On the contrary, BJP ruled Maharashtra has not paid the Anganwadi workers in 4 months. Reportedly, money meant for the SC/ST Sub-plan has been diverted to other activities. 1 lakh crores had been allegedly diverted for other activities since the formation of Modi government.

After experiencing the absolute disregard of Maharashtra government on the issue, on 3rd October people took to the streets in Wada. Around one lakh Adivasi farmers, women, youth, and students organized a massive protest. They marched for 4 kilometers. The administration which has been ignoring the cries of its starving people was efficient enough to deploy police and Rapid Action Force in massive numbers. The Tribal Affairs Minister was supposed to meet with a delegation; he fled Wada.

Prime Minister Modi on many occasions has called the 21st century: the century of Asia and by extension India. Is he and his party planning to take on the world with a large number of hungry and dying children?

* With Inputs from Vijoo Krishnan

Courtesy: Newsclick
 

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मैं एक शहरी, उत्तर भारतीय, सवर्ण, हिन्दू, मध्यम वर्ग, का पुरुष, हूँ

आज मैं आप सब के सामने अपने दिमाग की एक एक परत प्याज के छिलके की तरह खोल कर दिखाऊंगा

हमारे परिवारों में सब कुछ बहुत ही स्थायी और निश्चित होता है

हमारा धर्म संस्कृति परम्पराएँ सब बिलकुल निश्चित होती हैं

हमारे घरों में कोई भी धर्म या परम्पराओं पर कोई सवाल नहीं उठाता

हमारा धर्म रीति रिवाज़ सब कुछ सबसे अच्छा और पवित्र माना जाता है

हम मानते हैं कि हमारा धर्म सबसे पुराना , सबसे श्रेष्ठ और सबसे वैज्ञानिक है

हमारे घरों में दुसरे धर्म वालों और दूसरी जाति वालों के लिए एक तिरस्कार का भाव होता है

हम लोगों को शिक्षा , इलाज नौकरी , व्यापार के लिए कोई बड़ी जद्दोजहद नहीं करनी पड़ती

हमारे नाते रिश्तेदार , दोस्त , परिवार वाले हमारे मदद के लिए हर जगह मिल ही जाते हैं

हम लोग किसी बड़ी तकलीफ का नामोनिशान भी नहीं जानते

हमारी राजनैतिक सोच की सीमा सिर्फ कांग्रेस या भाजपा में से किसी एक पार्टी को चुनाव में वोट देने तक की ही होती है

हमारे घरों में कभी भी कश्मीरी मुसलमानों की तकलीफों , फौज के ज़ुल्मों , पूर्वोत्तर के राज्यों की तकलीफों , बस्तर के आदिवासियों की तकलीफों या दलितों के साथ भेदभाव का कोई ज़िक्र नहीं होता

अगर इन जगहों का ज़िक्र हमारे परिवारों में होता ही है तो हम लोग सरकार की , सेना की और पुलिस की तरफदारी में ही बोलते हैं

असल में हमारी राजनीति यही है कि हमारी जो सुखों से भरी ज़िन्दगी है उसमें कोई रुकावट नहीं आनी चाहिए

हमें लगता है कि हम इसलिए सुखी हैं क्योंकि पुलिस और सेना हमारे हितों की रक्षा के लिए आवाज़ उठाने वालों को मार कर हम तक पहुँचने से रोक रही है

हमारे घरों में आदिवासियों , दलितों कश्मीरियों , मजदूरों , पूर्वोत्तर के राज्यों , विभिन्न लैंगिक समुदायों के लिए आवाज़ उठाने वालों को कम्युनिस्ट ,देशद्रोही ,विदेशी एजेंट ,आतंकवादी कहा जाता है

हम लोग ही इस देश की राजनीति , धर्म , संस्कृति की मुख्यधारा हैं

हांलाकि इस मुख्यधारा में असली भारत शामिल ही नहीं है

असली भारत यानी करोड़ों , आदिवासी ,दलित , पूर्वोत्तर , कश्मीरी , भारत की मुख्यधारा की राजनैतिक ,धार्मिक ,सांस्कृतिक धारा का हिस्सा ही नहीं हैं

हमीं लोग इस देश की विकास की दिशा तय करते हैं , हमीं इस देश की अंतरात्मा हैं , हमीं इस देश की संस्कृति हैं

हमारी धार्मिक आस्थाएं ही इस देश की सरकार की धार्मिक आस्थाएं हैं

हम कह दें तो सरकार गोरक्षा के काम में लग जाती है भले ही पूरे दक्षिण भारत , पूर्वोत्तर , आदिवासी इलाकों में करोड़ों भारतीय गोमांस खाते हों

संघ, भाजपा कांग्रेस समेत सभी मुख्यधारा पार्टियां हमारे हिसाब से ही अपनी राजनीति तय करती हैं

और अगर कोई पार्टी सामाजिक न्याय या आर्थिक न्याय के नाम पर हमारे हितों के खिलाफ काम करने की कोशिश करती है

तो हम उसे गालियाँ देकर इतना ज्यादा देशद्रोही और बदमाश घोषित कर देते हैं कि उन्हें घबरा कर हमारी लाइन में आना ही पड़ता है

Courtesy: Facebook
 

The post एक शहरी, हिंदू सवर्ण, पुरुष का कबूलनामा appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Stop War on Adivasis, says the banner at Devraj Hall in Mumbai, as people from different walks of life, the elderly, students from colleges and professionals gather to listen to the voices from Bastar.

Chhattisgarh is in turmoil, with tribals being thrown into jail with false charges or worse, being killed in fake encounters. But even as the state continues to try and suppress and criminalize all voices from Bastar, there are many who continue to risk their lives daily to ensure that amid the Acche Dins, the voices of the people of Bastar are heard, somewhere, somehow.

Mainstream media has always been silent and largely ignores the atrocities committed by the state in Bastar, even as news sources fervently reported the Prime Minister’s visit to Chhattisgarh, only to sign MoUs in the state, without the people’s consent. Consent, it seems, has been long forgotten by the state.

Take the example of Raigarh, for instance, 26000 acres of fertile land was given to corporates, without consent of the people. Those who try to protest and raise their voices against such land grabs are quickly met with consequences such as harassments, threats and false arrests under the guise of them being Maoists.

Justice Prabhakar Gwal, Ex-CJM of Sukma district was also present at the event, one of the few judges that support the people’s struggle against the systematic oppression by the state, has himself been subject to threats, harassment and violence by the state and its’ agents, like many other government officials who try to help the people of Bastar.

Linga Kodopi, Journalist and Activist from Bastar, spoke of his journey of becoming a journalist and activist in response to what he had been witnessing. Kodopi was actively involved in the people’s struggle in Bastar and was arrested and tortured by the police, spent many days locked up in filthy conditions and faced repeated torture from police officials.

Kodopi started following incidents of state oppression in Bastar and would immediately go to affected districts to investigate in-depth, and became a strong voice against the injustices of the state in Bastar. Kodopi shared first hand experiences from the ground, separating facts from fiction as he recounted the incidents surrounding the ‘encounter’ of Makdam Hidme, police brutality towards her and those who tried to protect her and the malice with which she was murdered. He also talked about Salwa Judum, its’ spread across 5 camps in Bastar and Dantewada, who played a major role in many atrocities reported across the state, including the attack on Soni Sori and threatening members of JagLAG (Jagdalpur Legal Aid Group)

    “ …From mid 2015, the Police has been rounding up hundreds and detaining young Adivasi men in special security camps for days. Some have been beaten and released, others officially arrested and many are still missing. Mass detentions were followed by ‘mass surrenders’, as police claimed they surrendered voluntarily. Local accounts suggest otherwise. Surrenders were followed by encounters, and as the death toll continued to rise, people were confronted with mass rapes by uniformed personnel..”
    —Bastar Solidarity Network, Mumbai

Tales from Bastar are too many to recount, and the number people whose lives have been destroyed and turned upside-down because of the cruelty of security forces and the state of Chattisgarh are even more. Stories of children being killed, of the elderly being abused, of the women being raped and mutilated continue to turn up in the warzone that Bastar has become. Activists from Bastar call to the civil society to raise their collective voices; it is time to speak up for Bastar!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Courtesy: IndiaResist.com

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