Dangs adivasis allege harassment by officials

DANGS, April 7: The Legal Aid Unit of the Adivasi Ekta Parishad has alleged that thousands of Adivasis of Dangs were being harassed by forest officials. Over the last nine years, authorities have implicated them in a number of quot;false casesquot; in order to prevent them from cultivating forest land which they tilling for generations.

Deepak Chaudhary of Adivasi Ekta Parishad said forest officials had resorted to rumour-mongering to scare away Adivasis so that they do not cultivate land, now marked as reserved and protected forests which is a root cause of friction between the Adivasis and forest officials. The conflict has entered a new phase with forest officials launching a mischievous propaganda saying that the High Court stay which prohibits forest department from evicting them from quot;forest landquot; has been vacated, Chaudhary told The Indian Express.

Dangs8217;s Deputy Collector B P Sudani refused to comment saying he was least concerned about tribals. quot;I have no timequot;, he said.

Deputy ConservatorForest Ram Kumar, when contacted, claimed that the department had created goodwill among tribals.

quot;We are doing a lot of welfare activities in the Adivasi villages of Dangs. If we were harassing them, they would not have come to usquot;. He said Adivasis Ekta Parishad8217;s allegations were quot;false and baselessquot;. About the Court stay, DCF asserted quot;it is no longer in force after a Supreme Court rulingquot;.

However, Paresh Chaudhary, an advocate who has been handling tribals cases, refuted DCF8217;s claim saying forest officials are quot;misleading poor and innocent Adivasisquot;.