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Bharat Bandh: Tribal and Dalit outfits demand ordinances for forest rights, UGC posts

The tribals are now demanding that the Centre promulgate two ordinances in order to secure the rights of forest dwellers and fair representation in UGC faculty posts.

Bharat Bandh: Tribal and Dalit outfits demand ordinances for forest rights, UGC posts

Representational image. (Photo: iStock)

Tribal and Dalit rights bodies led the call for a Bharat Bandh on 5 March protesting against a Supreme Court decision which stated that tribals and forest dwellers whose claims over forest land were rejected under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, must be evicted.

The tribals are now demanding that the Centre promulgate two ordinances in order to secure the rights of forest dwellers and fair representation in UGC faculty posts.

Though tribal outfits came out on the streets for the peaceful protest in states such as Rajasthan, Gujarat, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and northeast, normal life remained largely unaffected.

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In Delhi, the protest began from Mandi House and ended at the Parliament Street.

In Bihar, 10 students of All India Student Association were reportedly detained for stopping a train. RJD activists too stopped the Janshabadi Express going to Ranchi near Jehanabad Station.

The apex court order, which was given on 13 February, is slated to affect at least 10 lakh tribals and other forest dwellers.

A stay was placed on the eviction order on 28 February by the Supreme Court on a plea by the government. The top court then asked the states to file affidavits by 10 July explaining how and why the claims of forest dwellers were rejected.

But fearing the threat of evictions, the tribal groups now want the NDA to protect their rights with an ordinance.

According to reports, the groups are also demanding that SCs, STs, OBCs, minorities and women are included for recruitment in higher judiciary posts. To that effect, they are demanding that the government establish the Indian Judicial Services under Article 312 of the Constitution.

In March this year, the UGC introduced the new 13-point roster system. Bahujan group has demanded that the 13-point roaster system in appointment in colleges, universities and government organisations is nullified since it reduces the jobs for SCs, STs and other backward communities.

Appealing the protesters to stop the agitation, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the government has not agreed to the court’s direction for departmental roster.

“We have a system of 200 point roster where university is regarded as one unit but the court decided against it & directed for departmental roster. We never agreed to this position so, we filed a review petition that also stands dismissed now,” he told reporters on Tuesday.

But opposition parties slammed the government on the 13-point roster.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav slammed the BJP government for its “anti-reservation policy”.

“SP is strongly opposed to the BJP government’s anti-reservation 13-point roster system. This policy, which is against the Dalits, OBC, backward, weak, and marginalised, goes against the Constitution,” he wrote on Twitter.

 

Adivasi Adhikar Andolan, All India Ambedkar Mahasabha and Samvidhan Bachao Sangarsh Samiti were among the groups protesting today.

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