By Sukumar Mahato
Lalgarh/Salboni: Exactly a month after the tribal agitation was launched in West Midnapore's Lalgarh, the Committee against Police Atrocities decided to lift the stir on Sunday. The decision was taken after the state administration agreed to almost all their demands.
Committee leaders Chhatradhar Mahato and Lalmohan Tudu met additional DM R A Israel at Lalgarh police station. After the meeting, Mahato and Tudu announced that the blockade would be lifted and they would accompany district officials when they would go to remove the trees from the roads.
The four-hour meeting ended at 7 pm. The administration reportedly agreed that police would not conduct raids between 6 pm to 7 am and if raids have to be conducted, village chiefs would accompany the policemen. Also, if the inquiry into torture on tribal women being conducted by backward classes welfare secretary R D Meena finds any policeman guilty, then he will have to be punished. The government will also have to pay compensation to the victims. Another demand removal of police camps from the area has already been met.
The administration promised that police would not harass members of tribal organizations, and a block-level monitoring committee would be formed to check torture on tribals. This committee would hold meetings every month. Only two demands that the SP should seek forgiveness and the discussions should be held at Dalilpur were not met.
While the state government was under tremendous pressure to bring the agitation to an end. The Committee Against Police Atrocities, too, was under pressure from the tribals, because the agitation was causing tremendous financial losses to local people as the cultivation of paddy was being hampered.
Earlier on Sunday, before the decision to withdraw the blockade was taken, around 200 armed CPM men wearing masks and black clothes patrolled the area in trekkers and motorbikes and cleared the blockades at Bhadutola, Penchapara, Moupal, Chengshole. They also allegedly ransacked four houses and kidnapped one person named Muroli Mahato.
The operation that continued from 11 am to 4 pm was led by Meghnad Bhuniya, CPM district committee leader, who was arrested last November along with Tapan Ghosh and Sukur Ali from Egra of East Midnapore while returning from Nandigram. Bhuniya told reporters not to take photographs of the gang carrying arms, threatening them that their lives would be at stake if they took and published the photographs.
The Committee against Police Atrocities alleged that "CPM is bringing goons from outside. They have ransacked three houses, and beat up our workers. We have been holding peaceful movement since November 6 and the local people, including tribal and non-tribal people, are supporting our movement. But the CPM has conspired with police to destroy our movement. People will teach them a lesson," said Chhatradhar Mahato.
CPM has taken a new tactic in the area by sending two separate groups one to Belpahari and the other to Salboni. At Belpahari, CPM is reportedly asking villagers to oppose the blockade because it is affecting development work and at night are threatening people disguised as Maoists asking for money and paddy, so that people get frustrated with the Maoists.
Lalgarh/Salboni: Exactly a month after the tribal agitation was launched in West Midnapore's Lalgarh, the Committee against Police Atrocities decided to lift the stir on Sunday. The decision was taken after the state administration agreed to almost all their demands.
Committee leaders Chhatradhar Mahato and Lalmohan Tudu met additional DM R A Israel at Lalgarh police station. After the meeting, Mahato and Tudu announced that the blockade would be lifted and they would accompany district officials when they would go to remove the trees from the roads.
The four-hour meeting ended at 7 pm. The administration reportedly agreed that police would not conduct raids between 6 pm to 7 am and if raids have to be conducted, village chiefs would accompany the policemen. Also, if the inquiry into torture on tribal women being conducted by backward classes welfare secretary R D Meena finds any policeman guilty, then he will have to be punished. The government will also have to pay compensation to the victims. Another demand removal of police camps from the area has already been met.
The administration promised that police would not harass members of tribal organizations, and a block-level monitoring committee would be formed to check torture on tribals. This committee would hold meetings every month. Only two demands that the SP should seek forgiveness and the discussions should be held at Dalilpur were not met.
While the state government was under tremendous pressure to bring the agitation to an end. The Committee Against Police Atrocities, too, was under pressure from the tribals, because the agitation was causing tremendous financial losses to local people as the cultivation of paddy was being hampered.
Earlier on Sunday, before the decision to withdraw the blockade was taken, around 200 armed CPM men wearing masks and black clothes patrolled the area in trekkers and motorbikes and cleared the blockades at Bhadutola, Penchapara, Moupal, Chengshole. They also allegedly ransacked four houses and kidnapped one person named Muroli Mahato.
The operation that continued from 11 am to 4 pm was led by Meghnad Bhuniya, CPM district committee leader, who was arrested last November along with Tapan Ghosh and Sukur Ali from Egra of East Midnapore while returning from Nandigram. Bhuniya told reporters not to take photographs of the gang carrying arms, threatening them that their lives would be at stake if they took and published the photographs.
The Committee against Police Atrocities alleged that "CPM is bringing goons from outside. They have ransacked three houses, and beat up our workers. We have been holding peaceful movement since November 6 and the local people, including tribal and non-tribal people, are supporting our movement. But the CPM has conspired with police to destroy our movement. People will teach them a lesson," said Chhatradhar Mahato.
CPM has taken a new tactic in the area by sending two separate groups one to Belpahari and the other to Salboni. At Belpahari, CPM is reportedly asking villagers to oppose the blockade because it is affecting development work and at night are threatening people disguised as Maoists asking for money and paddy, so that people get frustrated with the Maoists.
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