Stop land acquisition in tribal areas: CPM

Eluru: Communist Party of India (Marxist) district secretary Balaram alleged that the Acts constituted for the safety of tribals were being violated in West Godavari district. He demanded the government to take stringent action against the Revenue and police officials who were violating the Acts.

Addressing the media on Friday, Balaram said the government had enacted Land Transfer (Regulation) Act 1/70 to protect the lands of tribals in Polavaram, Buttayagudem and Jeelugumilli mandals.

Besides this act, the Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 or PESA that gives powers to resolutions of Village meetings and the Forest Rights Act which give rights on Podu lands to tribes are indiscriminately being violated by the officials. On the pretext of Projects and Reservoirs, the lands of the tribals are being forcibly acquired but the government is turning a blind eye to this injustice, he said.

According to the Land Transfer Regulation Act 1/70, the sale and purchase of lands after 1970 in tribal areas are not valid. However, these transactions are going on with the help of officials and public representatives. The revenue officials are taking bribes to manipulate the records,” said Balaram.

In support of his contention, he pointed out that in 2003 the ‘fake judgment’ fraud and in 2015, the fake pattadar pass books scam, were exposed. The CPM State committee member Manthena Sitaram alleged that the officials are forcibly removing the tribes from their lands and including them in the ‘Project Compensation Package’ despite the latter having title deeds to their lands.

He also alleged that compensation was being sanctioned to the non-tribal landlords and said such incidents had taken place in Reddiganapavaram, Palakunta Jaggisettigudem, Marlagudem, Thotapalli in Buttayagudem mandal, Jagannadhapuram, Vankavarigudem, P Rajavaram, Kamayyapalem in Jeelugumilli Mandal and Itukalakota and Reddinagampalem in Polavaram Mandal. He accused the Jangareddigudem RDO and Buttayagudem Tahsildar for backing the non-tribal landlords.

The CPM leaders said the police were intervening in civil matters and registering cases against the tribes and their supporting leaders. He said about 22 cases were registered against tribal woman at Chodem Durga in Buttayagudem mandal. They alleged that the police were trying to arrest CPM Division Secretary Aratlakatla Ravi and had opened a rowdy sheet on CPM leader Andugula Francis.

The CPM leaders demanded the government to publicise the action taken in the fake judgments and fake pattadar passbooks scams and stop the land acquisition activities in the identified lands. They stated that CPM would fight for the rights of the tribals.