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July22, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]ON COMPREHENSIVE LAW ON COMMUNAL RIOTS >> |
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ITEM 1: The Hindu, July 20, 2004, Tuesday 'Rise in crimes against Scheduled Castes, Tribes' By Our Staff Correspondent NEW DELHI, JULY 19. Crimes against the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes showed a steady increase between 1998 and 2002 with Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh topping the list. While the number of cases of atrocities against SCs rose from 7,445 in 1998 to 33,507 in 2002, the cases against STs went up from 725 to 6,774 in the same period. Figures available with the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) show that the cases in Uttar Pradesh stood at 2,737 in 1998 and in 2002 it was 7,927. Madhya Pradesh reported just 85 cases against STs in 1998 and it rose to 2,504 in 2002. Statistics available with the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes Commissions indicate that Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu recorded high incidence of atrocities against SC/ST between 1996-2000. Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar reported the maximum number of serious crimes against SC/STs. State-wise review of the serious crimes against the SCs/STs showed that the highest incidence of murder cases in respect of SCs in 2002 was Uttar Pradesh (371), followed by Madhya Pradesh (79), Rajasthan (44) and Gujarat (34). The highest rape cases were reported from Madhya Pradesh (412), Uttar Pradesh (305), Rajasthan (123), Maharashtra (64), Chhattisgarh (64) and Kerala (48). As regards total crimes against SCs, U.P. topped with (7,927), followed by Madhya Pradesh (7,217), Rajasthan (4,535), Tamil Nadu (2,097), Karnataka (1,787), Gujarat (1,370), Bihar (1,579) and Orissa (1,195). More than 90 per cent of the cases have been reported from these States. The data on crimes, including atrocities perpetrated on STs showed that Madhya Pradesh topped the list with a total of 2,504 cases, followed by Rajasthan (930), Andhra Pradesh (525), Chhattisgarh (508), Orissa (480), Nagaland (371) and Gujarat (340) and Karnataka (240). ----------------------------------------------------------------------- ITEM 2: Jana Sangharsh Morcha, July 20, 2004, Tuesday "Stop Atrocities On Tribal Women In M.P. And Chhattisgarh" Stop Atrocities On Tribal Women By Officials In The Name Of Removal Of Encroachments In Forest Lands The Jana Sangharsh Morcha, an affiliation of 15 mass organizations working in M.P. and Chhattisgarh, has strongly condemned the Uma Bharti government in the matter of atrocities on tribal women inflicted by the officials in the name of removing encroachments. The constituents of Jan Sangharsh Morcha, namely Samajwadi Jana Parishad, Kisan Adivasi Sangathan, Adivasi Mukti Sangathan, Narmada Bachao Andolan, Chhattisgarh Mukti Morcha, Shramik Adivasi Sangathan and others have demanded immediate restoration of tribals to their home and land. The Morcha has threatened to launch a strong agitation in the state on this matter if the government fails to act tough on the wayward officials. They said that on one hand Uma Bharati government is blaming to act tough in the matter of atrocities on SC/ST women, on the other hand it is encouraging the officials to let loose reign of terror on tribal women in the name of removing encroachments from forest lands. In the districts of Burhanpur, Damoh and especially in Betul the forest, police and revenue officials enter in one or other tribal villages every other day in the dark cover of night. They beat tribal women, misbehave with them and often put them in overnight illegal confinement without the knowledge of their husbands. In Betul, first of all, on the intervening night of 4th & 5th July they razed Bhandarpaani, a tribal hamlet under Chopana police station. In the incident they took away 73 tribal women and men, including children in their illegal confinement. Many of the women were taken away in the absence of their husbands. The poor tribes lost everything but for the clothes on their body. In the evening of July 9th, Danwakheda village was destroyed and the forest department without the knowledge of their husbands took two tribal women away. Recently on 17th July a team of 50 police, forest & revenue personnel team entered Ghorpadmal village under Mohda police station. They dragged tribal women out of their houses; misbehaved with them and later abused and terrorized the villagers. To cover up the incident the police has registered false cases of dacoity against 13 tribals. According to police, the villagers have broken their rifles and taken away their wireless set. Now the police are planning to further harass the tribals and also implicate the activists of the mass organizations. The Supreme Court in its judgement in the case of Pradip Prabhu vs. state of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, March 1995 stated very clearly that a committee of forest, revenue and tribal department officials should be formed to enquire into the matter of encroachments. Until then no tribal should be disposed of his or her land. The forest department is not even following its own laws. For instance, encroachment is a bailable offence under Indian forest Act 1927.Even though, forget the men, tribal women are denied bail and put into jails. In the Common Minimum Programme of the UPA government it has been clearly stated that no tribal would be evicted from forestland. The previous NDA government had taken a cabinet decision to give pattas to the tribal families who had been entered in the records as encroachers till 1993. The NDA government had successfully encashed this decision in parliament elections. The then chief minister Mr. Digvijay Singh was put in docks by then Prime Minister Mr. Vajpayee on this matter. The Uma Bharti government is in a way representative of the previous NDA government. Hence it must act on the promised agenda of the previous central government. Anurag Modi Convenor, Jan Sangharsh Morcha ----------------------------------------------------------------- ITEM 3: Keralaonline.com, July 19, 2004, Monday Orissa : Hindu Villagers Seek Nod To Adopt Christianity Bhubaneswar: Over 100 residents in an Orissa village have applied to the government seeking permission to change their religion from Hinduism to Christianity. Officials said 120 Dalit members in Badanka, Kendrapada district, have submitted that they want to convert to Christianity because upper caste residents were not allowing them to worship in the village temple. According to law, anybody can change their religion by seeking permission from the administration. "So, we have sought permission in writing," said the group's leader Ashok Mallik. The villagers have also threatened to stage a demonstration in front of the local administration's office from July 26 onwards if permission is not given. Mallik said the group had had set up an ashram on wasteland belonging to the government in the village. However, the powerful upper castes forcibly occupied the land and the administration did not help either. Humiliated, the group has decided to convert to Christianity, he said. A local administration official refuted the charges calling them baseless. "We are conducting an inquiry to find out if anybody has encroached on government land," he said. The Hindu rightwing group Bajrang Dal has also stepped into the picture saying that the temple was open to all and upper caste residents never opposed the entry of the Dalits. State Bajrang Dal president Subash Chouhan alleged that local Christian missionaries have been trying to convert the village Dalits. The issue of religious conversions has been a troublesome one for the state. Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two minor sons were torched to death while they were sleeping in their vehicle in the state's Keonjhar district in January 1999. A Hindu radical activist Dara Singh was sentenced to death and 12 of his accomplices to life imprisonment for the crime that came amid a campaign against conversions. (Agency) ------------------------------------------------------------------- Confederation of Human Rights Organizations (CHRO) |
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July22, 2004 - [India Thinkers Net]ON COMPREHENSIVE LAW ON COMMUNAL RIOTS >> |
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