Land row: Civil rights activists meet agitating Dalits in Sangrur

SANGRUR: A large number of agitating Dalits, seeking one-third share of panchayat land (reserved for SCs) at low rates for joint farming in villages, have termed their fight for panchayat land as a struggle for self-respect than for economic prosperity.

Workers of CPI(ML) hold placards as they raise slogans during a demonstration outside Punjab Bhawan in New Delhi on Sunday. They were protesting against the lathicharge by the Punjab Police on protesting Dalit peasants. Tribune photo: Manas Ranjan Bhui

Sushil Goyal

Tribune News Service

Sangrur, May 29

A large number of agitating Dalits, seeking one-third share of panchayat land (reserved for SCs) at low rates for joint farming in villages, have termed their fight for panchayat land as a struggle for self-respect than for economic prosperity.

This came to the notice of a four-member team of a Delhi-based civil rights organisation “Janhastakshep” when it visited 2-3 villages, including Balad Kalan (near Bhawanigarh), yesterday to take stock of the sufferings being faced by the Dalits agitating to get panchayat land.

The team members were: Dr Vikas Bajpai from JNU, Delhi; Prof Ish Mishra from Hindu College, Delhi University, Delhi; Anil Dubey and Rajesh Kumar, both senior journalists from Delhi.

Disclosing some parts of their inquiry report here today, Dr Vikas Bajpai said that agitating Dalits from the villages had told the team that after getting reserved land for joint farming in the past 1-2 years, their dependence on landlords had reduced from cent per cent to nil.

Dr Bajpai said that initially, the Dalit farmers were united by the Zamin Prapti Sangharsh Committee (ZPSC), but now, the farmers were playing the role of leaders.

The team members said that in Kherri village (near Sangrur), Dalits had been putting up a united face these days by occupying panchayat land allotted to them 40 years ago for constructing houses.

The team members also lashed out at the role of all major political parties, especially the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). They said the AAP supremo recently visited a saint in Patiala district, bordering Sangrur district, but he did not visit the Dalits.

Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann had also not bothered about the Dalits of Balad Kalan village who had sustained injuries during police lathicharge, the team added.

The team demanded release of Dalits lodged in jails, allotment of panchayat land to Dalits at nominal rates, possession of land to Kherri village’s Dalits for constructing houses and action against “erring policemen” who resorted to lathicharge at Balad Kalan on Dalits on May 24.