On October 13, 2020, houses of 35 tribal families were demolished in Biranpara village in Dhamtari district, allegedly by the Joint Forest Management Committee (JFMC) of Dugli village and neighbouring Dinkarpur village. During the eviction, standing crops were destroyed and food grains were set on fire. Under the National Forest Policy of 1988, JFMCs are formed by communities for the protection and management of forests. Its Executive Committee has the power to make arrangements to prevent encroachments. Biranpara is a forest village under the jurisdiction of Dugli panchayat and is home to about 100 households. The families whose homes were demolished claim to have been occupying and cultivating about 100120 acres of land in the village since 199394. Around six families claim to have land titles and informed LCW that they had applied for forest rights under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, several times, but their claims were always rejected verbally, and they did not get receipts of their applications. Without legal rights over the land, the JFMC called them encroachers and started demolishing their houses. In a factfinding report, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has accused the JFMC of the demolition. "The JFMC made the first demolition attempt in 2015, few days after these households were given a No Objection Certificate by the panchayat, headed by then sarpanch (head of panchayat) Ramkanwar Mandavi, verifying that the households are residents of that area," Sameer Quereshi, CPI(M) coordinator for Dhamtari district, told LCW. The factfinding report calculated a loss of INR 6 lakh per household, including property damage, crop loss and court expenses, and a total loss value of INR 2 crore over the last five years. According to the report, the harassment started five years ago. Since then, the JFMC made three demolition attempts in 2015, 2017 and 2020 – and destroyed crops. The affected families say they have been facing social boycott by the residents of Dugli, Dinkarpur and neighboring villages since 2015. This has affected their work prospects too. Quereshi further told LCW that the forest department had filed several complaints and legal charges against the residents of the 35 households, which resulted in their imprisonment. They were released on bail only after an order from the Chhattisgarh high court. The villagers also allege that the dominant castes/communities want to evict them from the land and occupy their land as well as the surrounding forestland. The land, located close to the main road, is much sought after. After the demolition incident in 2020, the 35 households tried to file a police complaint, but the police refused to intervene citing Section 155 of the Criminal Procedure Code (whereas a police officer cannot investigate a noncognisable case without the order of a magistrate**) **and referred them to a magistrate. Protesting against the inaction of the authorities, the families submitted a memorandum to the district collector. But there was still no action. The families then sat on a twoday strike, but nothing happened. It was only when they threatened to march to the chief ministers house that officials from the district administration stopped them, assuring action against the perpetrators of the violence. No compensation/relief has been offered to the families so far. A month after the incident, a government team reached the village for investigation and did not find any evidence to prove that the 35 families were legal residents of the village. District Collector J.P. Maurya told LCW that officials from the forest department and sub divisional magistrate office inspected the village thrice. He reiterated that these families are encroachers and that the JFMC is merely checking encroachment. However, on asking why the houses were demolished without any notice/procedure even if it is a case of encroachment, Maurya could not give a satisfactory reply. He also denied any social boycott of the families.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand for rehabilitation
Demand for legal recognition of land rights
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Compensation for lost property and end to violence
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Both
Forest and Non-Forest, Non-Forest (Grazing Land)
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
No
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Forest and Scheduled Area Governance Laws, Other
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Forced evictions/dispossession of land
Lack of legal protection over land rights
Non-implementation/violation of FRA
Violation of free prior informed consent
Non-rehabilitation of displaced people
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Arrest/detention/imprisonment
Displacement
Judicial harassment
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
The Joint Forest Management Committee demolished the houses of 35 tribal families. During the eviction, standing crops were destroyed and food grains were set on fire. The forest department had reportedly filed several complaints and legal charges against the residents of the 35 households, which resulted in their imprisonment.
Date of Violation
October 13, 2020
Location of Violation
Biranpara, Dugli village
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Forest Department
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Yes
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
Deepika has been working in Chhattisgarh on health systems, social determinants of health, food security, tribal health and forest rights through research, advocacy and community engagement. She is an active member of the People’s Health Movement, Right to Food Campaign and People’s Union for Civil Liberties, Chhattisgarh.
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