Krishna Kumar
New Delhi, December 27, 2010
Just five kilometres from a Maharashtra village where the UPA government launched its ambitious unique identification card project, 1,960 people were imprisoned for demanding, of all things a ration card on December 15.
The tribals, 670 of whom were women, have been languishing in jail since December 15. Apart from demanding ration cards, they were asking for implementation of the Forest Rights Act to help them claim the land they had been tilling.
Protesters from 28 villages in and around the Nandurbar district had gone to the collector's office on December 13 and submitted a charter of demands. However, when they failed to get an assurance from the authorities, the tribals staged a demonstration before the collector's office that continued for two days. The collector then called up the police, terming it a law and order problem.
The tribals, 670 of whom were women, have been languishing in jail since December 15. Apart from demanding ration cards, they were asking for implementation of the Forest Rights Act to help them claim the land they had been tilling.
Protesters from 28 villages in and around the Nandurbar district had gone to the collector's office on December 13 and submitted a charter of demands. However, when they failed to get an assurance from the authorities, the tribals staged a demonstration before the collector's office that continued for two days. The collector then called up the police, terming it a law and order problem.
Tribals demanding ration cards
The protesters were arrested and produced before a court and all of them were sent to seven days in judicial custody. Usually, the courts release protesters the same day or after a few hours of detention by the police.
The tribals had gathered under the aegis of the Satyashodhak Grameen Kashtakari Sabha ( SGKS), a tribal rights organisation.
"The protest was peaceful but they were behaving unreasonably. They told me that they would come before 6 pm but they came late and as soon as the meeting got over, asked for minutes of the meeting," claimed collector Appa Kumbhar.
Shifting blame of the prolonged custody of the tribals on to the police, Kumbhar said: "We have no role to play in their judicial custody. In fact, the tribals refused to get bail when the police and administration asked them to do so."
It would be pertinent to note here that under normal circumstances the police do not ask for seven days custody and when the initial period ended on December 21, the police further asked for a seven- day judicial custody. Now the tribals will have to be in the jail at least till December 28.
" Apart from the cruel manner in which the police and administration behaved, they should answer as to why they let 23 women protesters walk away. These women were dropped in the dead of the night at Dhule railway station," alleged Pratima Pardesh of the SGKS. Pratima put the number of those arrested at 2,300 and also rejected the claims that the tribals refused to get bail. " The government should know that ` 300 is worth several days of food for a tribal," she said.
Asked on what offences the police had arrested the tribals, Nandurbar superintendent of police Neelkanth Mhaske said, " Firstly, they had blocked off a road, secondly they were cooking inside the collector's office compound and were also using loud speakers after 10 pm." Congress MP from Nandurbar, Manikrao Gavit, almost justified the arrest saying the government was doing a lot for the tribals.
He also accused the SGKS of misleading the tribals. " The tribals are just being used by this organisation, when they were asked to get bail why did not they take it," Gavit said.
Maharashtra tribal affairs Minister Babanrao Pachpute was not available for comment.
Indifferent government crushes tribal protest
- 1,960 tribals sent to judicial custody and languishing in prison for more than ten days for a staging a peaceful sit- in
- Police charged them with blocking a road, cooking in the collector's office compound and using loudspeaker
- They were demanding ration card and right over the land they had been tilling
- Administration alleges that protesters refused to pay the bail amount of ` 300 for each individual
- Nandurbar Congress MP alleges tribals adamant on remaining in the jail
