Petition to NHRC on VCA demolition
NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF PEOPLE’S MOVEMENTS
A Wing First Floor, Haji Habib Building, Naigaon Cross Road
Dadar (E), Mumbai-400 014 Ph. No-2415 0529 E-mail: napmindia@gmail.com
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Date: May 18th, 2009
To,
Hon’ble Shri Justice Rajendra Babu,
Chairperson,
National Human Rights Commission,
Faridkot House, Copernicus Marg,
New Delhi
Dear Shri Justice Rajendra Babu,
We, the undersigned write this letter to you with a great sense of urgency and pain regarding the barbaric and inhuman treatment meted out to a long-standing social activist and peaceful social organization working amidst the adivasis of Danteweda district in Chhattisgarh by the state Government, by demolishing his entire Ashram premises, leaving him and all his committed colleagues and family members in a state of shock and anguish. The demolition of the entire premises of the Vanvasi Chetana Ashram (VCA) of Himanshuji took place on the early morning of 17-05-2009 with a contingent of more than 500 armed police and para-military personnel swooping in and ruthlessly razing to the ground virtually every single thing that was painstakingly built and nurtured in the last 17 years. We also have credible information of six young students having been illegally detained for hours and some of them badly beaten up by the police. When some activists spoke to the Collector Mr. Sori, he is learnt to have confirmed the incident, though he pleaded ignorance of the police atrocities!
It is feared that Himanshuji’s initiative in the resettlement of more than 400 adivasis who had been displaced due to the Salwa Judum and had gone over to Andhra Pradesh has led to this sudden demolition. The process of resettlement had just started and families had begun to move back and Himanshuji and his colleagues were standing in solidarity and supporting them. It seems as if the Government is worried that, like earlier, if these villagers would also resettle, then their plans of creating the buffer zone and converting the lands of the people for corporate use would be foiled and, therefore, they decided to come down heavily on Himanshuji. We also have enough reason to apprehend that this brazen action of the district administration and police may be a state’s response to Himanshuji’s work with the adivasis who are victims of the Salwa Judum and all sorts of violent acts. He has been fighting a case against the brutal killing of 19 adivasis recently. Also, his significant participation in the Raipur Satyagraha on 04-05-2009 in support of the release of humanist doctor Binayak Sen, with the adivasis and activists of Narmada Bachao Andolan, Jagrit Adivasi Dalit Sanghatan and other groups, wherein he had also addressed the press and spoke of the continued unlawful activities by the Salwa Judum and the complicity and connivance of the State may have prompted this action against him.
The ground for demolition is that the Ashram is “an encroachment” over government forest land”. However, village after village is located on forest land in Bastar and Dantewada and forest land rights are now granted to the adivasis Gram Sabha. The matter being in court, we are of the opinion that this pre-mature demolition is not only unlawful, but may also tantamount to contempt of court by the state government. Whatever it be, there is certainly no need, we feel, for this sort of a vindictive bulldozing of a socially concerned institution engaged for years in genuine peace-building work, which also has a lot of goodwill among local adivasis.
This is a demolition, we feel, not just of an institution, but of the very constitutional rights and values, in a way. We, the members of people’s movements and the large fraternity of democratic voices of this country condemn this inhuman and violative act of the Chhattisgarh Government and the Dantewada administration in no uncertain terms and urge this Hon’ble Commission to inquire into all the police atrocities during the demolition process and also evaluate the acts of the Government on the plank of human and constitutional rights and issue appropriate recommendations and direct necessary action, against the officials and employees, including payment of appropriate compensation to the survivors of this demolition and restoration of all their damaged property.
Attached herewith is a copy of the demolition notice dated 13-05-2009 received by Himanshuji on the 16th of May! Also enclosed is a brief note detailing the entire incident for your urgent consideration, intervention and action.
With a firm hope that justice shall be delivered ….
Thanking You,
Your’s sincerely
Medha Patkar (09423965153)
Please send your endorsements for this petition to:
nba.medha@gmail.com
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