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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Barwani tribals allege wrongful arrests by Mahim Pratap Singh

Barwani tribals allege wrongful arrests by Mahim Pratap Singh

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published Published on Aug 1, 2010   modified Modified on Aug 1, 2010

Recently, Union Home Secretary G.K. Pillai wrote to the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department, expressing concern at alleged atrocities committed on tribals.

While top officials of the Forest Department have rejected the “allegations” as baseless and ill-informed, a recent case in the Barwani district justifies Mr. Pillai's concerns.

When Valsingh Sastia, an Adivasi, decided to repair the roof of his house before the monsoon, he had little idea that it would land him in jail on non-bailable charges. Valsingh and two other Adivasis were arrested by the district police on complaints from the Forest Department for allegedly “stealing” wood from protected forest land. In May, residents of Karanpura and other villages of the Pansemal forest range had got together to donate some wood (which they had grown and protected on their own land) to Valsingh, since the roof beams of his house had begun to rot. However, when Valsingh was transporting this wood to his home, he was stopped by officials of the Pansemal forest range.

When word started spreading in the area and the locals gathered on the spot, the officials let him go. However, two days later, a case of robbery and obstructing and harming government officials was registered against Valsingh and Bhaisingh Davar and his son Shera Davar, whose tractor was used for transporting the wood, under Sections 392, 353 and 332 of the IPC. Bhasingh and Shera were arrested on July 20, while Valsingh surrendered on Friday.

The arrests have caused anger among the Adivasis, who claim that the three have been wrongfully arrested. They claim that the Forest Department is troubling Valsingh for his efforts to spread awareness of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act. “The Adivasis don't live in cement houses and so they have been using wood to construct their houses for generations and if this is illegal, all the Adivasis of the region should be arrested,” says Madhuri of the Jagrat Adivasi Dalit Sangathan, an organisation working with tribals of the region.

The Adivasis are planning to court mass arrests to protest the arrest of the three villagers in at least six police stations of the district in the next couple of days.


The Hindu, 2 August, 2010, http://www.hindu.com/2010/08/02/stories/2010080257461200.htm


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