BTN: NAXLITE Vs SALWA JUDAM: OPTIONS ?:: KILLINGS OF TRIBALS AT GOLLAPALLI PS AND STATEMENT OF HON'BLE CM OF CG on the floor of the house

CC: Politicians of India../PM/CM
Respected Law makers of India.
Sir/Madam:
It is imperative to explore modern technologies to counter the Naxlite mess;to save vulnerable tribals as well.

 Of course first we have to win the confidence of Non-Naxlite people of affected areas..

You are requested to go through the following discussions.. and take necessary decisions to  hunt down or reform the Naxlites with in a time frame.

Thanks
Manoj Padhi
an Indian


Dear Pravinji:

Thanks for explaining this sensitive matter.
Your argument has several convincing points, which I believe  should be  considered seriously.
However, the quality of Naxlites available is  not the same  ideological Naxlites of 1960s, who used to take up arms and fight the local landlords/oppressors.

I think,  private army like Salwa Judam must be discouraged and replaced with real police and creating a local intelligence wing. India should develop something like US CIA drones, which is being used in FATA area of Pakistan to fight Taliban/Islamic insurgents. With local intelligence and  drone combination, we should hunt down the Naxlites  . When 160 out of 602 districts of India are  Naxal affected, we can definitely use the combination of technology, intelligence and police   to do do away with the  Naxal menace

An eye in the Sky with striking capability  has become a necessity.

On Fri, Jan 16, 2009 at 4:28 AM, tribal welfare <tribalwelfare@gmail.com> wrote:

Dear Manoj ji

 

I do not agree with what Mr.Sunil Kumar has alleged.

It has become a fashion amongst all those who take law in their own hand and violate or those who supports the illegal acts of the state and its actors by such remarks. Mr. Sunil Kumar is not the first or the only person to make such allegations. Can he cite one example where any HR Activists have praised the violence practised by Naxalites or for that matter any law breakers? 

 

The statement of Chhattisgarh DGP, made at USA at a conference that  the arrest of Ajay TG was wrong, is a old story and has been discussed widely. This also proves that mistakes are made but nor realised till some innocent persons are put to lot of harrashement and akward position in the society. Ajay TG is released but there are many who are still in the jail for no fault of theirs.

 

Now my views on the your comments.
 

I agree with you that tribals by and large tribals are against the forcible displacement. How can we ignore that the track record of the government while dealing with the displaced is full of injustices and failed promises. How can you blame the tribals for the fault of others and have been cheated all along in last sixty two years.

 

Naxalites have not come in a day nor prepared their hideouts / bases overnight. It is largely due to the failure of the state agencies that has resulted in their penetrating in to the neglected tribal areas where all the money meant for the development of tribals was siphoned off by corrupt people in power.

 

As if this was not enough, lower level revenue and forest staff as well as timber Mafia and forest contractors also exploited those simple natured poor tribals. Female folks have also undergone sexual exploitation too.

 

This entire scenario resulted in a perfect breeding ground for the Naxalites, who took on the exploiters to task that resulted in tribal of jungles becoming friendly to them. This is a hard reality and must be accepted. We can not close our eyes from the hard realities in our quest for looking at how to solve the naxal menace.

 

Until and unless corrupt faces are not driven away, naxal problem can not be solved. We all know that there are now lakhs of Bangladeshis and many Pakistanis are staying in our country illegally. How without corrupt faces be it in administration or the politicians these people can penetrate in our country in such a big way. How come naxals manage their supplies within their interior hilly terrain abodes!  We have seen how ten boys in their early twenties created havoc and took the country for ransom for almost 60 hours. Rome was not built in a day.  

 

True it is that government can not provide security and safety to all the citizens all the times but that is not the license to kill any one and loot any body's property. When some one goes to the police with a complain, we all know what is the response of the police. Not registering the FIR in itself exposes the true character of present day police. They have different yard stick for different categories of people. Though every body is the same before the eyes of law, then why those tribals are dealt with separately? Leave those tribals alone, They do not need 24 x 7 or even any security at all. Just ensure that all the mischievous players are nabbed and brought to justice. This is the duty of the state but to involve tribals to fight with naxals is too much to expect from them.

 

You want me to tell what the government should do, but do not speak a word that though naxals have presence in 14 out of 18 districts of the state but Salwa Judum is practiced in only one remote area of the state where iron ore mines are located, that too within less than 24 hours of state inking an MoU with Tata Steel. My question is why Salwa Judum is not any where else in the state and also at other areas of Bastar but only at those areas where eagle eyes of industrial corporations have fallen? Salwa Judum also exposes the unholy nexus between industrial corporations and the state government. Essar has picked up the bills worth over one crore of rupees of the relief camps is the proof of the interest of the industrial corporations. How can you justify the burning of houses, destruction of over 644 villages, forcing 3.5 lakh tribals to take refuge elsewhere, those who resist, deny or take leadership initiatives beat and even kill them? All this is done in the name of Salwa Judum by the state forces. This is the truth of Salwa Judum.

 

Well, you may raise a question how it is possible in an democratic country and that what ever I have stated is wrong. No Manoj ji, I have stated shear naked truth. Nandini Sunder and few others have filed a PIL at the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India where the state under an oath has submitted that they will compensate all those whose properties have been damaged by salwa judum and security forces. When the government has admitted illegalities by the Salwa Judum, how can the Chief Minister continue to justify an illegal movement?

 

• You say "To remove a thorn, we need a thorn."

If I have understood correctly, what you want to say is that Naxal menace is a thorn and to tackle it, you need another thorn in shape of Salwa Judum. Right!

 

Do you suggest the state to act illegally in guise of Salwa Judum by beating, killing, looting properties, burning houses; destroy villages one after another in a war like planned way?

 

Resource crunch is not the issue at all. You must know that huge funds have been made available to the government of Chhattisgarh which was over Rs. 600 crores in the second year of Salwa Judum. Almost half of the CRPF forces were given to Chhattisgarh. Salwa Judum started in the year 2005 and the leaders of Salwa Judum claimed that before it rains in 2006, there will be not a single naxalite at Dantewada. 2006 gone, 2007 gone, 2008 gone but naxals have not gone away on the contrary they have multiplied their strength. This is another truth of Salwa Judum. Most of the Salwa Judum leaders are not tribals and have made fortunes. Those who were moving on cycles are now the owners of over twenty vehicles. Where is the resource crunch? If Orissa CM has failed to contain Naxlites for 7 years, it is his failure but for that we can not blame others.

 

Salwa Judum means Peace Mission. But except peace every other thing has happened and is happening even now after learning the lessons in the hardest way. Time will prove that the step of Orissa is a wrong step, as has been proved in Chhattisgarh, with half of the total causalities in the country was on top of the list. This is one more truth of Salwa Judum.  Poverty struck tribals in the forest area are lured by Rs. 4000/- and promise to absorb in regular police and pushed to tackle naxals which the regular police force tries to avoid.

 

Statement of Mr. KPS Gill, who was the Chief Security Advisor, specifically appointed to tackle naxal menace has passed adverse remarks by stating that there is no political will of the state to crack on ultras and that when the home ministry itself indulges in rampant corruption in postings, transfers and promotions, no one should expect that the naxal problem can be solved.  

 

There is nothing wrong if the local affected people are armed provided they work within the legal frame work and not indulge in violence.I can not support any one who indulges in terror attacks and intrudes in to the rights of the innocent tribals, example of which has been exhibited in the guise of Salwa Judum at Chhattisgrh.

 

Government is duty bound to protect its people and as such if you raise a question about responsibility, it should be raised before them and not before the Human Rights Activists. You must also know that not only me but many others have also strongly condemned the brutalities of the naxals and even submitted memorandum to the authorities.

 
You have wrong information that naxalites are being hunted down. The recent killing of 17 villagers is not the first case of fake encounter. Such incidents have happened in the past also and have happened again last week. A team of journalists had gone to the village very next day morning and have exposed the falsehood of the police before the world.

 

If you need a favorable climate for $ 85 billion committed investments to come up, the state also needs to amend its policies and plug the loop holes that are left for the industrial houses to play with. In the name of glorifying investments, no body is authorized to bulldoze the rights of the poor tribals that are available to them by the virtue of provisions of the constitution of India. Make those tribals partners of development and set examples, amend your mineral and mining policies, amend R & R policy by making it a people friendly  and implement all those strictly with full honesty and sincerity, identify the mistakes already committed and correct those mistakes, punish the guilty officers and they come to seek the support, who denies. Salwa Judum is not the answer to any of the above.

 

You asked me, what the Government ought to do. If you have a better solution than Salwa Judam - Let us provide us.  Here below is my statement.

 

I would like to apprise you that last year a top level meeting was held at the Planning commission, with the item on agenda, how to address the naxal menace and what best can be done. It has been agreed that the neglect of the tribal areas, naxalites have been able to make their bases and that can be reversed only with development of the area and that development means improved health care, quality education, proper transportation, saving the tribals from the unnecessary harrashment, providing support to agriculture and other livlihood programs etc. Industrilisation is not the key to development in the tribal areas.

 

Forest rights acts empowers tribals to rights on Kendu leaves, Bamboo etc but there are no rules made so far that shows, how to use those rights, Free tribals from the harassment of the lower level forest staff, correct and update their land records and take the Revenue Inspector to task when he is found to do mischief with the land ownership records of the poor illiterate tribals, improve education and health care that can lay an example to the tribals in the naxal controlled area. When the people will see the difference, result is bound to come. Bullet is not the answer and it will only multiply the problem as is proved at Chhattisgarh. The process can only be reversed by the development of those areas only and there is no other solution.

 

Let me know your views

 

Pravin Patel

Human Rights Activst

 

On 1/15/09, tribal welfare <tribalwelfare@gmail.com> wrote:

 

 

On 1/15/09, Manoj Padhi <manojpadhi@gmail.com> wrote:

Dear Pravinji:

I would like you to read the statement of  Mr Sunil Kumar
Chief of Police of 36garh under Fire for Human Rights Record at Berkeley Conference::'Arresting Film-maker May Have Been a Mistake': Vishwa Ranjan

Quote

However, Sunil Kumar alleged in his presentation that human rights activists only speak out against violence by the state and disregard Naxalite violence

UnQuote

Your objections are noted. Here are few comments of mine

• Tribals don't wish to abandon their land. They are also upset or terrified by the violence of Naxlites who prefer Jungles to hide. Government can't provide 24x7 police protection to tribals because of jungle area and insufficient number of force. So you tell us, what the Government ought to do ? If you have a better solution than Salwa Judam - Let us provide us.
  
• To remove a thron, we need a thorn. If the Government had enough resources to tackle the leftist fanatics, why they would be waiting.  Orissa CM failed to contain Naxlites for 7 years. in 8th year, he came out with an idea in line with Salwa Judam. Pay 4000/- salary & recruit some local COP. Now this is 'War on Terror' and the person who accepts Rs. 4000/- is fully aware of the risk. How it is different than an Army sepoy, who knows the risk and joins the Army ?
  
• What is wrong if the local affected people are armed and capable to respond ?
• [1] $ 85 billion investiments are committed in Naxlite Areas. Idiot Naxlites will not talk or surrender. The Government has got the mandate to tackle this issue under the constitution.
  
• It is time for us to support the Government and Salwa Judam and their tribal cadres.
  

Let us abandon the Salwa Judam (assume). Will the Human rights activists take responsibility if they start killing Tribals. Whom you will complain if  in stead of alleged Salwa Judam, the Naxlites start killing Tribals ?

It is impossible to expect that police/Salwa Judam need to be right 100%. They might be troubling few tribals. But, 99% they will be encountering Naxlites. If there are $ 85 billion committed investments and plants have to come up, Industrialists could hire Salwa Judam privately to hunt down Naxlites. In fact, this is WIn-WIn for people because whether Salwa Judam is paid by Government or Industrialists, Naxlites are being hunted down.

Readers may comemnt..


http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/12/07/stories/2006120703721500.htm
[1]Naxalite activities could impact mega investments: CLSA

Our Bureau

Kolkata , Dec. 6

CLSA, which has fixed 40,000 as the long-term target for the Sensex without specifying a timeframe and stated that India remains Asia's best growth story with the highest valuations, has expressed serious concern about extreme-Left movement in the country.

Broking firm's research report said the Naxalite movement is becoming stronger in the mineral rich pockets of Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.

The report, drawing from the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh's acknowledgement that the movement has spread to 160 out of 602 districts in the country, indicated that if the socio-economic discontent, particularly among tribals, was not addressed then it may seriously impact mega investments.

"Private sector investments, vital to the overall development of the region, may not take place if the Government cannot find a sustainable solution to what it insists is a law and order problem," said the author of the report, Mr Anirudha Dutta, a CLSA analyst.

There are, however, hardly any sign to suggest that the Government is taking any urgent steps, report points out.

The report further warns that over the past five years, Naxalite activities have increased in the districts surrounding Bangalore.

Given the importance the Naxalite-affected regions in terms of natural resources and the $ 85 billion already committed investments, socio economic issues must be addressed with a sense of urgency.

On Thu, Jan 15, 2009 at 12:10 AM, tribal welfare <tribalwelfare@gmail.com> wrote:

 

KILLINGS OF TRIBALS AT GOLLAPALLI PS AND

STATEMENT OF HON'BLE CM OF Chhattisgarh

on the floor of the house

 

Dear all

  

I would like to pick up the relevant portion from the address of the Hon'ble Chief Minister, made on the floor of the house, I quote :  

 

"Salwa Judum is the answer to get rid of the naxal menace in the state and made it clear that it would end only after the end of naxalism in the state".

 

The statement is made at that point of time, when innocent tribals were being killed and their property was looted by the Salwa Judum actors for the only fault of that those tribals refused to be part of the Salwa Judum militia.

 

I raise the following to discuss the issue:

 

Ø      There is no doubt that Naxals are having their strong presence in the state of Chhattisgarh. 14 out of 18 districts of Chhattisgarh are in the grip of naxal related problems.

 

Ø      When the Chief Minister says on the floor of the house that "Salwa Judum is the answer to get rid of the naxal menace in the state" and made it clear that "it would end only after the end of naxalism in the state" 

 

I would like to ask few simple questions to the Hon'ble Chief Minister.

 

1.       Right to life and Right to own property is the constitutional rights of the citizens of  India. No body is empowered to deny those rights nor can play mischief with it.

 

2.      It is the duty of the state to protect the lives and    p

         properties of the citizens irrespective of caste, creed or 

         religion, poor or rich.

 

3.       Now, when the Chief Minister says that Salwa Judum is

          the answer to get rid of Naxal menace, he directly 

          agrees that his police force has proved to be the failure

          to tackle naxal menace and now depend on the Salwa  

          Judum which has proved that it is nothing less than a  

          milit ia organization.

 

4.       Chief Minister has confirmed on the floor of the house that Salwa Judum is the answer to the Naxal menace, and then the question arises,

 

Ø      What is so special at Datewada that the state is behind the tribals to force them to fight with Naxals in the name of Salwa Judum?

 

Ø      Why at Dantewada area only and not any where else in the state?

 

Ø      Is it because the largest investor of the country i.e. House of Tatas have interest in those areas for mining of iron ores?

         

Ø      Is it a mere coincidence that immediately within less than 24 hours of inking the MoU with the Tata Iron and Steel Company on 4^th of June, 2005, Salwa Judum began at Kutru Police Station area on 5^th of June, 2005?????

 

The recent killings of tribals at Singavaram under the Golapalli Police Station area in the district of Dantewada have pulled off the veil from the face of the administration about the truth of Salwa Judum. Those tribals were forced to desert their villages and join the Salwa Judum forces, ended with the looting of their property and killing 17 of them when they denied to do so. 

 

Height of the tragedy is that while the Salwa Judum is on looting and killing spree, Hon'ble Chief Minister glorifies them on the floor of the house.

 

What is now needed to take strong and drastic action against the injustices done to the tribals of Bastar in the name of cleansing naxalites. To cleanse naxalites from the soil of the state is the job of the state and not the innocent tribals. Why they should be forced to do so and why they are forced to pay heavy price for their refusal to join the state sponsored Salwa Judum militia needs answer.

 

It is pity to see that congress party even as an opposition party has failed to perform their role. Though they have 38 MLAs against 50 of the BJP party, they are proving to be inefficient lot more particularly in the matter of raising and and supportingg the people when they need them the most. They need to learn lessons from Ms. Mamta Banerjee whose Trinamul Congress has only 30 MLAs in the house against the mammoth 235 MLAs from the left but Mamata is making them on the run even in a small issue that pertains to the injutices caused to the people. Singur and Nandigram has resulted in throwing out CPM party out from almost all the  Panchayats and now have MLAs also in both the areas. The recent by election has been won by her party with a margin of 40,000 votes on a seat that fell vacant by the death of the CPM MLA. People have supported her because she supported them in the hour of their need and pushed out the left parties from even their strong holds.   

Pravin Patel

--


Manoj Padhi

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Manoj Padhi

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