By Manzar Bilal, TwoCircles.net,
Patna: Thousands of poor slum-dwellers have been rendered homeless in Ranchi after the BJP-led Jharkhand government partially and selectively acted on the state High Court order to remove illegal constructions. The Jharkhand High Court had issued order to remove all illegal constructions but the state government applied it only on slums where the poor live while leaving untouched the rich and affluent who are occupying illegal lands.
Government ignored rehabilitation order
Most importantly, the court had instructed the government to make sure proper rehabilitation/resettlement of the affected people prior to removing the encroachments but the administration completely ignored this part of the order and made thousands of people homeless.
The Muslim-dominated Islam Nagar slum colony of the state capital was worst affected among the areas that came under the anti-encroachment drive. On April 5 when the residents of Islam Nagar saw bulldozers razing their houses to dust, they protested against it only inviting the wrath of the police that promptly opened fire killing two of the protestors.
The reaction
The matter has put the state on boil as several organizations have joined hands and floated an umbrella outfit, Jharkhand Bachao Nagarik Abhiyan to stand up against the inhuman act of the government.
Several politicians including BJP Ranchi MLA and Assembly Speaker CP Singh, former BJP MLA from Jamshedpur Sarju Rai, former Jharkhand chief minister Babulal Marandi and a number of Congress leaders including Ranchi MP Subodh Kant Sahay staged sit-in in the capital demanding suspension of the drive and rehabilitation of the affected people first.
To whom land belongs?
“The 90% population of Islam Nagar were Muslims and 10% are adivasis. The anti-encroachment drive has affected 25 thousand people of the colony while almost 1800 houses were razed so far. The way the government opted was totally inhuman” said Mohd Rizwan of United Milli Forum while talking to TCN from Ranchi.
“Though the land of Islam Nagar colony belongs to Polytechnic Engineering College, in 1966 after a riot erupted in Ranchi the government rehabilitated the affected people here. Since then they had been living there with all the legal facilities such as electricity, water and ration and they were also using their rights to vote in all elections. But today the government has forced them to live under the open sky without any alternative” he added.
Mr. Tanweer of Sangam Urdu daily who was present when anti-encroachment drive was going on in Islam Nagar said: “The police did not care of sentiment of those who were losing their houses and things they owned after hard works. The Police opened fire at these poor in which two lost lives while at least 10 got injured who are still in hospital. But shamelessly the state government did not do anything for the victims.”
Why only slums came under order?
“There are hundreds of acres land in the state that are illegally occupied, but the government applied the order only for those who are mostly daily wagers that too without rehabilitation” Tanweer added.
He said that displaced people are in sorry condition. “They lost everything. They do not have anything to eat. The Muslim organizations such as Imarat Shariah and Jamaat-e-Islami are providing relief packages to victims and several individuals also came out to help them but no relief was given by government” he told.
Muslim organizations demand compensation, rehabilitation
It should be mentioned here that two days back a delegation comprising representatives of different organizations led by Maulana Anisur Rahman Qasmi, General Secretary of Imarat Shariah, submitted a memorandum to Jharkhand governor with several demands.
“We demanded that the residents of Islam Nagar should be rehabilitated at the same site where they had been living for more than 40 years. We also demanded Rs.10 lakh as compensation for the families of two persons each who died in police firing on April 5” said Dr. Hassan Raza, state President of Jamaat-e-Islami, who was part of the delegation.
Court ordered rehabilitation of displaced
Meanwhile, the Jharkhand High Court on 19th April has ordered Jharkhand government to allot land at concessional rates to the residents of Islam Nagar.
The division bench of Chief Justice Bhagawati Prasad and Justice P C Tatia directed the government that those affected people who were living on encroached land for over 20 years should be allotted a piece of land at concessional rate and they will pay for it in instalments. But they have to submit valid proof such as voter identity card or ration card to claim the land.
It will be interesting to see if the government rehabilitates the victims following the court order or will remain inactive in this regard as earlier.
[Photo by www.newzfirst.com]