Kaimur Adivasis | SabrangIndia

Kaimur firing: Fact-finding report makes startling revelations!

Sat, 24 Oct 2020 13:42:09 +0000

On October 23, Brinda Karat, Polit Bureau member of the CPI(M) and Vice President of Adivasi Adhikar Rashtriya Manch, released a fact-finding report on the firing on Adivasis by Bihar Police in Kaimur. The firing had taken place on September 11, when the Adivasis were holding a peaceful sit-in protest in Adhaura. The report published together by All India Union of Forest Working People (AIUFWP), Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) and Delhi Solidarity Group (DSG) looks into what exactly transpired on that fateful day.

The Adivasis had come together under the Kaimur Mukti Morcha and had placed six demands before the government:

Implement Forest Rights Act 2006.
Declare Kaimur as a Scheduled area as per the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution. Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 to be implemented effectively.
The administrative reorganisation of Kaimur Valley.
Scrap the 1927 colonial Indian Forest Act.
Implement the Chota Nagpur Tenancy Act.
Abolish the proposed Kaimur Forest Wildlife Sanctuary and Tiger Reserve.

However, instead of engaging in dialogue police opened fire on them. Seven activists were also detained in the process, though released on bail later.

The four member Delhi-based fact-finding team consisted of Amir Sherwani Khan (All India Union of Forest Working People), Matadayal from (All India Union of Forest Working People), Raja Rabbi Hussain (Delhi Solidarity Group) and Aman Khan an advocate from the Supreme Court. They visited the Adhaura Block, Kaimur District of Bihar from September 23 to 27, 2020.

The findings of the report were released in an online press conference attended by not only Brinda Karat, but also Roma Malik (General Secretary – AIUFWP), Teesta Setalvad (Secretary – CJP) as well as the authors of the report.

Shedding light on the group that was protesting Roma (who prefers to go only by her first name) said, “It is not as if Kaimur Mukti Morcha (KMM) is some banned organisation. They are an old and highly respected group that has been working tirelessly to help Adivasis and forest dwellers use all legal means at their disposal to stake individual and community claims to forest land. Their growing influence on the locals worried the forest department who began calling the group a Maoist organisation!”

Roma further explained that following the creation of Jharkhand, Kaimur Adivasis in Bihar suffered from a lack of representation since they became a minority in Bihar. As a result, their rights such as collection of herbs and wood from the forest were snatched away. The forest department levied restrictions on their sale of forest produce. Moreover, during the pandemic, officials invaded Adivasis fields and dug holes. While it is clear they did this to prevent the Adivasis from cultivating the land, the official reason given was that this was for a tiger reserve project!

“Forest-dwellers tried to talk to the District Magistrate and showed the Supreme Court stay order that recognised their right to live in forests, as well as the Forest Rights Act of 2006. However, forest officials said they neither recognised the law nor did they feel compelled to adhere to the stay order. Accordingly, many houses in Sarainar, Dighar, Gullu, Guiyan and many other areas were destroyed,” narrated Roma.

It was to protest this injustice, that Adivasis assembled in thousands at the Birsa Mundak Smarak Sthal in Adhaura block of Kaimur district on September 10. Protesters from as many as 108 villages simply wanted to talk to authorities. However, no official met with or spoke to them.

Frustrated women protesters padlocked the forest department office. They hoped that such an extreme step would make authorities acknowledge their complaints. However, instead of agreeing to talk with the Kaimur Mukti Morcha (KMM), forest officials broke the padlock at night, never bothering to approach the protesters.

This wilful disregard for Adivasi suffering angered the protesters to such a point that they proceeded to barge into the office. Police attacked them and fired at them. Three people were injured with one narrowly missing a fatal wound to the head. Many people were arrested and false cases under charges such as Sections 307, 353, 147, 148, 506, 504 and even Arms Act. No investigation was conducted yet 25 people were named. Member Viniyan Ashram’s office in Adhaura was destroyed and their motorcycles were taken away as well.

“It is surprising that during lockdown, when people’s livelihood should be protected, the forest department is disrupting their fields, barring their local business and attacking communities,” said Roma.

Moreover, the KMM had also boycotted elections, although they did believe in the electoral process. The fact that Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai had visited the area following this declaration is significant because Ministers seldom visited the area. Yet, the community’s claim forms continue to gather dust in administrative offices.

“All across India, forest department is violating laws and trying to intimidate Adivasi communities. Meanwhile, wherever forest rights were recognised, people faced no such atrocities. In fact, they were empowered enough to help out migrating labourers during the lockdown period,” she said.

Meanwhile, Kharwar Adivasi community’s Subhash Singh, a professor, who had participated in and witnessed the events of September 10 said, “They are lying when they say we did not seek permission. I personally ensured permission was obtained and all legal processes followed.”

Narrating the events of the two-day protest, Singh said, “We assembled at Adhaura block in Kaimur Pathar to hold a two-day protest. We wanted Kaimur hills to be declared a scheduled area as per Schedule 5 of the Constitution. Further, we demanded the implementation of the PESA Act and abolition of the tiger reserve project in Kaimur area. We wanted the 1927 Indian Forest Act to be withdrawn and the implementation of Forest Rights Act 2006 instead. Lastly, we wanted our forest rights to be acknowledged.”

Singh said that Adivasis had gathered to assert these demands during the peaceful protest but police opened fire on them and arrested seven people while 22 people faced false charges.

“In this way, the government refuses to listen to Adivasi demands. If we try to educate ourselves and demand our rights, we are called Naxalites. Even today, in Adhura, Adivasis live in a deplorable condition,” he said.

Subhash recounted how Kaimur Adivasis do not have proper houses, and the few that are there, are mud-houses that are destroyed by forest officials. He asks, “They say the houses are on forest grounds. But forest, land and water are our birthright. So where else will we live?”

Even today, Adhaura does not have health facilities, he said. Many people die enroute to the main district hospital which is nearly 70-75 kms away. As for the single government hospital in the area, it has been turned into a military camp.

“The hospital had 400-700 beds. But the government has now made it a camp because of which Adivasis can’t be treated there,” he said.

He also pointed out that there are no educational facilities in the area. There are buildings of schools but no teachers to teach there. Attendance exists only on register. He also said there is no electricity in Adhaura. Moreover, villages are yet to receive roads that connect the main district to their areas. The forest department does not allow this claiming they do not want trees cut down.

Lastly, he said there is no provision of telecommunications barring a single BSNL tower that all villages use. However, he pointed out that even this company, despite being a public-sector undertaking (PSU) was ignored by the government.

In this way, he concluded, Adivasis are still deprived of their basic rights. The KMM and communities are agitating for the realization of these demands.

Matadayal who talked about his observation during the visit to the six villages as a member of the fact-finding report team made similar comments about the area.

He recalled how many villagers in Adhaura were scared to talk to them because of police and forest department officials. People who had previously interacted with the organisations agreed to talk but the villagers, with whom members wished to speak, were apprehensive of the newcomers.

Gradually, people talked about the police firing. After listening to their accounts, Matadayal recommended levying heavy charges against police and forest personnel, just as the officials lodged false charges against Adivasis.

“Using SC/ST Act and Section 7 of the Forest Rights Act, we can lodge complaints. Right now, we are only in the dharna-phase. Also, while it is wonderful that the Supreme Court has taken up the case filed by CJP-AIUFWP, we also need to do the same at the district level where our women are harassed and members are attacked,” he said.

To this, CJP secretary Teesta Setalvad assured the community that CJP-AIUFWP would provide all necessary help to fight this legal battle.

After talking to Adivasi women, another team-member Amir Sherwani Khan, realised that people were well versed in matters of the law. “In many villages they talked about Schedule 5 of the Constitution. However, they could not oppose the authorities. Even after the firing, they had no information about their family-members who had been injured or detained,” recalled Khan and dubbed the administration as an “andha kanoon” regime.

“All women stood fast on their decision that they would die rather than giving up their forests. I remember an aged-woman there said that the forest department may attempt to bury us but we will not leave our forests,” he said.

On September 25, they tried to meet the man whose ear was shot during the firing. However, villagers hid the person on seeing visitors. As a result, the team failed to meet the victim although villagers narrated the entire incident. All of them complained about the forest department’s restrictions in collecting forest produce.

“I looked at MGNREGA numbers and saw that they did not benefit from this scheme during the lockdown. Nearly 5,000 people worked under this scheme for 30-40 days. This despite the fact that MGNREGA should provide employment for 150 days in tribal areas. So, while Adivasis were not allowed to carry out their traditional occupation, they also did not receive benefits of a public policy,” he said.

Khan also said that for eight months nobody had gone to school. Villagers said the area had become a sort of garrison where the community was surrounded by CRPF personnel everywhere.

Similarly, team-member, Raja Rabbi Hussain said he felt a fear within the community. He pointed out that the forest department was stealing their land under the guise of road construction. He was appalled that the department could not differentiate invasive species from plants from indigenous plants. Any plant was being planted along the road that affected that forest’s biodiversity.

Talking about empowerment, he said that people needed to be liberated to demand justice due to them from the administrative and judicial machinery.

CJP secretary Teesta Setalvad concluded proceedings by sharing how CJP had remained steadfast in its campaign to empower Adivasis even during the pandemic. Setalvad said, “For the last six months we at CJP have been using technology to conduct training programs and workshops via webinars to empower people with proper legal knowledge.” The webinars and workshops will continue in the months ahead.

The entire fact-finding report may be read here:

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Kaimur Mukti Morcha stands firm on boycotting Bihar election until they are given forest rights

Wed, 21 Oct 2020 05:01:33 +0000

Forest-dwellers and adivasi communities in Kaimur plateau assert their decision to boycott Bihar election despite an appeal from Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai at the seldom-visited Adhaura district.

Rai visited the tribes and assured them of a proper solution in their struggle for forest rights. In exchange, he asked the agitators to withdraw the decision to boycott the election.

Members suspected and rejoiced that the visit was a direct result of the letters to Ministers and the State Human Rights Commission that had gained international media’s attention thanks to the help of Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) and the All India Union of Forest Working People (AIUFWP) and their decision to snub state election.

Further, they said a similar political pressure influenced the release of the seven protesters – Kailash Singh from Rohtas district, Sipahisingh Kharwar and Ramsakal Kharwar from Goiyan village in Adhaura district, Hari Charan Singh from Karaila village, Pappu Paswan from Jharpa village, Lallan Singh and Dharmendra Singh from Baradih village – on October 15 despite facing serious charges under Section 307 and the Arms Act at a district sessions court.

They were detained following a two-day peaceful protest organised by the Kaimur Mukti Morcha in Adhaura on September 10 and September 11 to demand the enforcement of the Forest Rights Act 2006 and to denounce the proposal of the tiger reserve and wildlife sanctuary. Enraged by the authorities’ persisting silence, some people had tried to shut down the forest department’s office. This resulted in a scuffle with the police which then escalated to lathi-charge and gun-firing.

According to the protesters, “Following the scuffle, police began firing indiscriminately and ended up cutting off the ear of one of the protesters. If that gunshot was fired to their head, the person would have died! For this and such explosive incidents we hold the officials accountable who don’t even bother visiting this place. Today, they are blaming protesters for the violence that they themselves have incited.”

AIUFWP Deputy General Secretary Roma said that along with the demands for forest rights, the community should also question why a peaceful protest suddenly turned into a clash.

Tribal settlements like Kharwar, Gond, Urav and Karoba communities from the Vindhya mountain range mainly live in 11 panchayats of Adhaura district. This population of one lakh individuals lives in the wildlife sanctuary area. Yet, the irony of the situation is such that locals are more scared of eviction from the tiger reserve than they are of tigers.

Forest-dweller Balkeshwar said, “Forest-dwellers have always lived peacefully with tigers in the area. We do not fear tigers. We respect them. However, we do fear the government who is trying to strip us off our forest rights and scheming to remove us from here.”

Kaimur’s adivasis did not suffer a financial crisis 25 years ago, when Kaimur plateau was still to be declared a wildlife sanctuary. Once the declaration was made in 1996, adivasis lost their means of livelihood because the forest department restricted various activities such as the collection of wildlife products such tendu leaves, mahua, piyar and other herbs.

Baradih villager Ram Surat Singh said, “We don’t have money to buy foodgrains. The forest department has banned the collection and sale of forest products. What are we to do? The Chief Minister had promised us land for farming – we still haven’t received it. We are facing a livelihood crisis.”

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Bihar police shower bullets and lathis on Adivasis in Kaimur!

Tue, 15 Sep 2020 10:58:54 +0000

In a rather outrageous incident of highhandedness of authorities over the vulnerable tribal communities, Bihar police fired at a democratically organised protest sit-in in Adhaura block of Kaimur District. Activists of Kaimur Mukti Morcha had staged a sit-in demonstration on September 10 and 11, 2020, to demand legal rights over water, forest and land. But the police administration and forest department did not listen to their demands and the activists locked the gates and forest department in a symbolic manner, to make their voices heard. But instead of engaging in a dialogue with the peaceful protestors, the police opened fire and lathi-charged the protesters!

Three people from Sarai Nar, Barkatta and Chafna were injured in the incident, while more than half a dozen people of Kaimur Mukti Morcha were arrested. The police also broke locks of Kaimur Mukti Morcha office and conducted raids there.

About the movement

This struggle has been going on for decades when the “Kaimur Mukti Morcha” (Translated as: “Kaimur Freedom Movement”) was launched with the help of Dr. Vinayan who was also the founder member of the All India Union of Forest Working People (formerly known as National Forum of Forest People and Forest Workers).

The contribution of the movement has been praiseworthy, and has been acknowledged by the state government as well in the past. Though the Kaimur area was notorious for its Maoist presence in the past, it became free of Maoists after the organisation of Kaimur Mukti Morcha by Dr. Vinayan who advocated strictly democratic means such as peaceful dialogue.

On the day of the peaceful protest, the members of Kaimur Mukti Morcha were making the following demands:

– the administrative reorganisation of Kaimur Pahar

– declaring Kaimur as a Scheduled area as per the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution

– implementing the Chhota Nagpur Kashtkari Act

– abolishing the Kaimur Pahar Forest Wildlife Sanctuary and Tiger Reserve

– Forest Rights Act 2006, along with Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 to be implemented effectively.

Precursor to the incident

In July as well, Kaimur Mukti Morcha had gathered around the office of the Block Development Officer to get their demands heard. This gathering saw thousands of villagers from various villages in Adhaura block expressing their anguish over the persistent nuisance caused by forest officials obstructing their daily lives and means of livelihood making life difficult for them during the lockdown.

Forest department’s atrocities

The forest department officials, since March, have been allegedly employing means like encroaching upon agricultural lands of these Adivasis with the intention of evicting them from villages of Adhaura block such as Gullu, Guiya, Dighar, Bahabar, Pipra, Sainagar, Sodha, Bahera, Dumrava, Sarainar. In Sarainar they allegedly destroyed all 50 houses of the villagers in a bid to evict them. In Gullu, the government officials including forest officials have been allegedly pressuring the villagers by digging pits on their farm lands under the grab of carrying out afforestation.

They have been citing afforestation as a reason to displace these forest dwelling Adivasis from these lands for several months. Kaimur Mukti Morcha is fighting against these unwarranted acts of the public officials that make earning a livelihood a struggle for these Adivasis. The authorities have also allegedly threatened members of Kaimur Mukti Morcha such as the Secretary Raja Lal Kharwar and Rajinder Oraon and few others, by issuing notices to them that they would be arrested by the CRPF. Some CRPF personnel even landed at a village meeting in Bahida village to allegedly create an atmosphere of terror in the villagers’ minds.

Civil society reacts

National Deputy General Secretary of All India Forest People’s Workers’ Union Roma strongly condemned the firing and said, “For more than 6 months, tribal societies have been raising their forest rights demands, but no one is ready to listen.” She said that the Forest Rights Act, 2006 has been in existence for 14 years but in Bihar, but it has not been implemented on ground. “Instead of listening and solving the problems of the tribals, the police have responded with batons and firing. This shows its ruthless attitude towards the weaker sections,” said Roma.

The leading human rights organisation Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) has also condemned the incident of firing. CJP Secretary Teesta Setalvad, “Firing on Dalits and Adivasis who were demanding their rights is a cruel act and is a violation of the Constitution.” Others who raised their voice and condemned the incident include Bundelkhand Dalit Adivasi Adhikar Abhiyan; Sokalo Gond, President of Kaimur Mazdoor Kisan Mahila Sangarsh Samiti and Nivada Rana of Tharu Adivasi Mahila Kisan Mazdoor Manch.

The Press Release of AIUFWP may be read here.

Bihar Adivasis revive the call for ‘Jal-Jungle -Zameen’

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Bihar Adivasis revive the call for ‘Jal-Jungle -Zameen’

Fri, 24 Jul 2020 04:38:32 +0000

The Adivasis of Adhoura block of Kaimur district in Bihar, on July 15, gathered around the BDO office to raise their voice against the oppression of forest officials who are employing various tactics to harass the Adivasis in these forest lands. This gathering saw thousands of villagers from various villages in Adhaora block expressing their anguish over the persistent nuisance caused by forest officials obstructing their daily lives and means of livelihood making life difficult for them during the lockdown. While it was the mandate of the government to its officials to ensure that people remain indoors to prevent spread of COVID19, the forest officials instead took undue advantage of the situation and resorted to such undue means.

This struggle has been going on since decades when the “Kaimur Mukti Morcha” (Translated as: “Kaimur Freedom Movement”) was started with the help of Dr. Vinayan who was the founder member of the All India Union of Forest Working People (formerly known as National Forum of Forest People and Forest Workers).

The forest department officials, since March, have been employing means like encroaching upon agricultural lands of these Adivasis with the intention to evict them in villages of Adhaora block such as Gullu, Guiya, Dighar, Bahabar, Pipra, Sainagar, Sodha, Bahera, Dumrava, Sarainar. In Sarainar they went and destroyed all 50 houses of the villagers in a bid to evict them. In Gullu, the government officials including forest officials have been pressurizing the villagers in a bid to displace them and have been digging pits on their farm lands under the grab of carrying out afforestation, thus building pressure from both ends.

They have been citing afforestation as a reason to displace these forest dwelling Adivasis from these lands since months. Kaimur Mukti Morcha is fighting against these unwarranted acts of the public officials making earning a livelihood a struggle for these Adivasis. They even resorted to threatening members of Kaimur Mukti Morcha such as the Secretary Raja Lal Kharwar and Rajinder Oraon and few other members by issuing notices to them that they would be arrested by the CRPF. Some CRPF personnel even landed at a village meeting in Bahida village to create an atmosphere of terror in the villagers’ minds.

The ‘Jal-Jungle -Zameen’ movement has gained traction now and they have put forth their demands in a document where they raised the slogan “Adhaora Chalo” and stated that they will fight for their rights till their last breath. They have demanded that the Kaimur range be included under Schedule V of the Indian Constitution as a Scheduled Area. They have also demanded that the Acts such as the Chota Nagpur Tenancy Act, the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) and the Forest rights Act, 2006 be implemented forthwith. They have also asked that the threatening tactics the public officials have been resorting to by issuing notices to members of Kaimur Mukti Morcha be also stopped.

The “Adhaora Chalo” demand document may be read here.

Kaimur Mukti Morcha

Kaimur with its large forest cover has people residing in areas which are largely inaccessible by roads with even no mobile network due to the dense forest cover. Due to the constant struggle of the members of Kaimur Mukti Morcha, in 2010 Bihar government declared Kaimur as free from Maoists.

The Kaimur Mukti Morcha has been a result of Dr. Vinayan, in the 1980s marching on foot through 150 villages and organised the Kaimur Mukti Morcha which has been fighting for its rights ever since. The political apathy towards Kaimur, which is majorly a forest area with many Adivasis living within and hence the people have had to organize themselves into this non-violent democratic movement to assert their rights.

Lockdown and Attacks on Tribals

The historical injustices that have been inflicted upon forest dwelling communities since the British raj continue to this day, in a democratic country that upholds equality of law. These tribal communities are still treated by forest officials as they would be treated under an imperialist government and act in complete and utter disregard towards the laws and even court orders.

These unwarranted acts of forceful evictions of such vulnerable sections of society are condemnable and also amount to infringement of the basic fundamental right of right to life under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution as well as violative of provisions of The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. Further they also go against the Supreme Court order of February 2019 staying evictions of all forest dwellers from their lands in Wildlife First vs. Union of India in IA No. 35782/2019.

Despite legal provisions and court decisions being in favour of the Adivasis or forest dwellers, public officials have been defying them and are acting in complete disregard of even humanitarian concerns when the country is reeling under the Covid-19 pandemic.

The growing incidents of harassment of Adivasis have become a matter of concern. Several instances have come to light where members of forest dwelling communities have been allegedly threatened, attacked, assaulted and abused by forest officials, often in alleged complicity with the police.

An incident of land grabbing took place in late June in Lilasi village Muirpur of Sonbhadra district, UP where a businessman allegedly illegally usurped forest land and started construction of a house and a shop on that land. When Adivasi villagers reached the spot to talk to him, his hired goons allegedly issued death threats to Adivasis and chased them away.

Some of these incidents that go beyond humanitarian standards have been brought to the notice of the National human Rights Commission (NHRC) by CJP and AIUFWP.

In one incident, forest officials in Uttar Pradesh allegedly attacked and even molested Adivasi women belonging to the Tharu tribe, in the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in broad daylight, while in another incident Van Gujjars of Rajaji National Park, Dehradun were beaten up, their shelters were destroyed. They were arrested on trumped up charges and were allegedly even tortured in custody. A woman member of the community was also allegedly subjected to gendered violence in custody. Such escalated incidents of injustice against India’s indigenous people are on the rise and need urgent attention of concerned authorities.

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