Kamal Ghorui
RAIPUR: Former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel on Wednesday questioned the BJP govt’s claim that Maoist violence has come down and would be “wiped out by March”, after Bijapur police asked Congress MLA Vikram Mandavi to postpone his Feb 12 tour of interior villages citing security threats. The issue erupted after the Bijapur police wrote to Mandavi requesting that his proposed visit to villages in the Bhopalpattanam area be deferred on security grounds. Mandavi, however, told TOI that ensuring security is the govt’s responsibility, and that he would go ahead with the tour. “If the govt cannot provide security, that is their issue. I will definitely go,” he said.“Union home minister Amit Shah says Maoists will be eradicated from the roots in March. The BJP govt says MLAs cannot go on tours. So what is the truth? If Maoist activities are still continuing, what exactly is ending?” Baghel said. “Our govt was better, at least MLAs could travel without being stopped.” Mandavi was on his way to Bhopalpattanam located on the Chhattisgarh-Maharashtra borders, while speaking to TOI and he said, “I have already left to visit the remote villages of Bijapur on Wednesday and would meet villagers in settlements including Pilur, Edapalli, Sandra, Chhotekerkel and Gudum, among others. I am an elected representative from this region and no one can stop me visiting my constituency and its people. When they (BJP govt) talk about Naxal-free Bastar then why are citing security issues there?”The actual problem is that they don’t want the reality inside the villages to come out in open, Mandavi alleged, saying if he’s stopped on the way and prevented to go further, he would stage a sit-in protest on the spot. A letter by Bijapur SP stated the area is Maoist-affected and located in the interior, with kutcha road access and a continuing possibility of Maoist activity. Given the current situation, the police requested that the programme be postponed in the interest of security. Copies of the letter were marked to concerned gazetted police officers, the Bijapur control room and local station in-charges for necessary action.There are possibilities that Congress MLA would be intercepted and disallowed going ahead into the Maoist affected regions. Mandavi further alleged that there were information from the villagers, that a corundum mining project in tribal-dominated Bijapur district has been cleared without mandatory Gram Sabha consent or public hearing, and demanded that the environmental clearance be cancelled and the process restarted transparently at village Kuchnoor.Under the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA), the Panchayati Raj Act and the Forest Rights Act, he said, Gram Sabha approval and consent are compulsory for mining and development projects in tribal-majority regions. “But in this case, there was no consultation with the Gram Sabha of Kuchnoor, no public hearing and the panchayats were not even informed. This is a clear violation of constitutional rights of tribals,” Mandavi said.
