Vidhya, with Agragamee, points out that “It is ironic that a Chief Minister, whose administration murders tribal people at the drop of a hat should inaugurate a 'tribal fair' less than one month after the most heinous of such acts”.

Dear Friends,

Republic day, 2006, Chief Minster, Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the Tribal Fair in Bhubaneswar, and announced that the state government will withdraw minor cases pending against tribals. It is ironic that a Chief Minister, whose administration murders tribal people at the drop of a hat should inaugurat a 'tribal fair' less than one month after the most heinious of such acts. But, what really bothers me is, why is Naveen Patnaik interested in withdrawing minor cases against tribals, is this not an admission, that innocent tribal people are being persecuted with false legal cases? Is this a sop to make the public in general, who are still aghast after the Kalinganagar massacre think that here is a Chief Minister whose heart bleeds for the oppressed and suppressed tribal people?

But, the sop is not going to make the tribal community think differently, because they have suffered too much and for too long, in the hands of the present government, and in the hands of past governments as well. Kalinganagar is but a symptom of the large scale injustice perpetrated against the tribal people for long. In fact, ever since they can remember.

In Kashipur, the tribals questioned the Larsen and Toubro mining project coming up on Siji Mali, and Kutru Mali on the Kalahandi border, 47 people were booked in cases and imprisoned in Rayagada district for three weeks, then, on their release, they were booked in cases in Kalahandi, and had to spend another 7 days in Jail. They were finally released on conditional bail. The case remained, some years later, when some irregularity was found on their obeying the conditions, non-bailable warrants were issued against them. They had to spend more than ten thousand on just transportation and the lawyer to get a bail this time. In the instance of UAIL, over the last decade and more, cases have been booked against nearly hundred tribal people including women. Some have spent several months in prison, and are now out on bail, others have non-bailable warrants against them which makes free movement for them within their own locality almost impossible, there are 2 people now in jail.

If the state slaps a case against innocent people, and harasses them, the public does not even have the freedom to call it injustice, as the 'case becomes sub-judice'.

But, perhaps, we can listen to Shivaram, who has been in jail since September. In his letter to me he writes:
I have been in jail for nearly four months now. I was warned by the police, as well as by others not to take part in anti-mining activities, but, I went around from village to village talking to people, in March, I organised a large meeting, and then in May, I took people from my village, Maikanch to attend a large gathering in Tikiri. The meeting was reported in Sambad, and I was also mentioned in the report. From that day on, the police started hounding me. They came to my village in the night to arrest me, I tried to hide, but, eventually, they caught me.

I am happy in prison, as I have not committed any crime, or any misdeed. I am confident that either today or tomorrow, I will get justice, and be a free man. I am only upset that my family is suffering because I am not able to look after them.

Shivaram's bail plea has been rejected in the high court.

In Kalinganagar, leader Ravi Jarika was in jail for almost a year. It took the Kalinganagar firing and killing of 13 innocent tribal people to get him out on bail.

The charges against Ravi and Shivram invite imprisonment for life, ten years, etc. But, then, there are several tribal people in prison women and men who do not even know what are the charges against them. In Kashipur, there are several tribal people like Shivram's parents who have warrants against them. The police decides when and who they will pick up. They decide what charges will be framed against them. Mukta, is a frail, tiny person, who spoke up against the Maikanch firing. There is a non-bailable warrant against her. These are the tribal criminals. Obviously, Naveen Patnaik does not include these people in his R Day promises. Whom does he mean, and why only tribals?

But, then, this is nothing new. The British also criminalized the tribals to control their forests, today, a democratic government criminalizes them to usurp the very land they live on. The parallels between the colonial era and the present situation are quite disturbing, as memories of that violent rule of the British are ever revoked, with armed police men with police vans and barrack, suited and booted bureaucrats, sleek gleaming vehicles, stationed in the tribal hinterlands to ensure law and order.

Naveen Patnaik might think he can get away with making empty promises, and making criminals out of innocent tribal people, who were only demanding their basic rights, and then, when they still insist on voicing their rights sending special police to murder them. The question a begging here is, who is the criminal? But, in these days, it is the criminal who even controls the answers, so our Chief Minister is probably right in thinking he can get away with anything.

But, he should also realise that this is the thinking of a despot, and in a democracy it strikes a very jarring note. In his eagerness to woo the investor he has begun an ethnic cleansing of the tribal communities. Many amongst the salaried classes also feel today that a few tribal lives need to be sacrificed for the 'development' of the state. What is this development, and what is this 'few' has not been defined. So 3 was a few, five years back when Naveen Patnaik's police force sacrificed tribal lives in Maikanch five years back years back, then 8 was few when the same police force fired on tribal people in Nawrangpur, now, 13 is few, and so the cleansing goes on.

Naveen Patnaik probably feels that some dozen and odd tribals sacrificed to get the kickbacks that will help him hold his fort in today's monetary politics is no big deal. That is why he coolly offers to withdraw minor cases against tribal people, less than a month after his law keeping force decimated 13 of them, that is why he appeals for people to keep the peace, when his police force were the ones to destroy it in the first place, that is why he orders a judicial inquiry, when everybody knows that these are just exercises to gloss over the crimes of the state.

If the Chief Minister is really interested in justice for the tribals, he would have instituted criminal proceedings against the Collector and the SP responsible for the Kalinganar killings, but then this would prove his culpability as well.

Vidhya is with Agragamee and can be contacted at agragameeATsatyamDOTnetDOTin, awsdcATsifyDOTcom by email or at Agragamee, Kashipur - 765015, Dt. Rayagada, Orissa. ph: 06865285174; 06742557936; 06742551130

Related Links
Kalinganagar Mutilation of Tribal Bodies Alleged
Economic Impact of Externalities
Report on Kalinganagar Firing
Signing Away Orissa - The POSCO MoU