|
Ranchi, July 10 : Two opposition parties in
Jharkhand - the Congress and the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha Prajatantrik
(JVMP) and ruling alliance partner, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) -
Tuesday came out in support of tribal villagers protesting the
government regaining possession of 227 acres of land for building an
IIT, an IIM and a law university that had been illegally occupied by
them for farming.
Former Chief Minister and JVMP president
Babulal Marandi sat on a one-day fast at Morabadi ground in Ranchi,
protesting the state government's move to acquire land and baton charges
by police against villagers last week.
The Congress on Monday
had staged a sit-in demonstration in front of Raj Bhavan. "The
agriculture land should not be acquired forcefully," Stephen Marandi, a
Congress leader told reporters here Tuesday.
The ruling BJP
meanwhile finds itself in a catch-22 situation as its key alliance
partner JMM is against forceful land acquisition. "The issue should be
resolved amicably instead of the use of force," said Jharkhand
Agriculture Minister and BJP leader, Satyanand Jha.
The
government had acquired 227 acres of land at Nagri situated around 20 km
from Ranchi more than 50 years ago. The land was used by the villagers
for farming as it was not used by the government.
When the state
government last year decided to build buildings of IIT, IIM and a law
university, villagers started protesting the government move to acquire
the land.
The villagers moved the Jharkhand High Court against
the state government's move to acquire the land. The high court passed
the judgment against the villagers in April this year and directed the
state government to expedite the work on the land. After the setback,
the villagers moved the Supreme Court. The apex court in June also
refused to hear the case.
After failing to get relief from the
courts, the villagers stepped up their protest. Last week, the villagers
demolished the boundary wall and clashed with police. Police resorted
to baton charge on the villagers in which more than 20 people were
injured.
Police action invited sharp reaction from the parties.
Jharkhand governor Syed Ahmad also sought a report from the state
government over the incident.
© IANS
|
