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dam-l Gujarat Government's Attempts to defame NBA
GUJARAT GOVERNMENT'S ALLEGATION RIDICULOUS; EFFORT TO INFLUENCE THE
COURT AGAINST NBA; GOVT. MISUSING THE COURT ORDER TO THREATEN PEOPLE
Gujarat government is trying again to defame and suppress the Narmada
Bachao Andolan (NBA), this time with an eye on the Supreme Court
hearing. The recent allegation by the Gujarat officials against NBA
regarding the so called beating incident in village Chhota Badada
and the subsequent political hullabaloo over it in and outside the
state Assembly seem to be part of well planned strategy on the part
of the powerholders in Gujarat. They have been misusing the recent
interim order of the court and have been threatening the vilagers of
the submergence to make them move out of their villages.
Recently, the Gujarat government had made a big propaganda of an
imaginary and concocted incident in which an official of Sardar
Sarovar Narmada Nigam was said to be stripped, paraded naked and
beaten by the villagers on March 21. The allegation is totally
baseless and mischievous and is being deliberately spread to create a
bias about the NBA in the mind of the Supreme Court. The Gujarat
lawyer had been indulging in the NBA bashing in his arguments and is
trying to do so even outside of the court. This has been a part of
the well planned strategy of Gujarat government, as the Supreme Court
hearing is drawing nearer. Before such hearings in the past the
Gujarat government tried to create such misunderstandings about the
NBA. On one such occassion, some townspeople from Maheshwar were
taken to Gandhinagar in Gujarat to make serious allegations of
corruption by Medha Patkar. On another occassion, the Gujarat
government had searched another 'scandal' of foreign money on th e
part of NBA.
The alleged incident of Chhota Badada on 21st March was a complete
travesty of truth. The Gujarat official came in the village
accompanied by one of the middleman working for Gujarat. The
middleman, one Hiralal Patidar, has been infamous in villages for his
criminal records and his corruption in the name of taking the people
for resettlement. On that day, the middleman threatened the villagers
of the impending sub,mergence due to the increased height of the da.
In fact, the Gujarat government has been misusing the interim order
of the Supreme Court which had allowed the construction of 5 metrewrs
on the dam. They have been propagating it as a judicial sanction for
the dam and have been threatening of the submergence to oust the
villagers. They villagers of Chhota Badada were incensed by the
arrogance of the middleman and the tacit approval of it by the
official. Moreover, all this was taking place at the villagers'
gathering on the day of Gan-Gour, the most important festival in the
Nimad region. The village elders, including the Deputy Sarpanch, Mr.
Manoharsingh Jat, tried to reason with the official and the
middleman. After heated exchanges and altercations with the
villagers, the village elders made the official to return back. It
must be noticed that the village has been resisting valiantly any
attempts to displace the people by force or fraud. This time, with
the interim order of the Court in their hand, the pro-dam forces are
out to intimidate the people.
It is not surpising that the Gujarat politicians have taken up the
issue with the great alacrity and have been using it as an imaginary
beating stick against the Andolan. We strongly condemn the utterances
of the Minister of Narmada Development, Mr. Vyas, in the Assembly the
other day, and warn him to exercise restrain. In case of any
untoward incident, the government would be held responsible.
We appeal to all the conscientious citizens, organisations all over
India and abroad to keep watch on the acts and tantrums of Gujarat
government to defame one of the major non-violent people's struggle
in the land. We have to expose and restrain these acts by the
government and the pro-dam forces. In fact, it is these very
forces who have been using force, repression and fraud to oust the
people in the name of development for all these years. Even the court
will have to take note of th kind of repression that had been let
lose for the sake of the dam.
SANJAY SANGVAI