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- Update from forest workers union regarding Kanhar dam Police Firing (20 April 2015) / Fact Finding report by Chattisgarh Bachao Andolan
[ April 14, 2015]
Urgent Alert
Firing in Sonbhadra, UP
Police firing in Kanhar anti dam proterstors early morning today against illegal land acquisition by UP Govt
Firing done on the day of Ambedkar Jyanti
Police firing on anti land acquisition protesters at Kanhar dam early morning today. One tribal leader Akku kharwar from Sundari village, Around 8 people have been grivieously injured in the firing and lathi charge by the police. Thousands of men and women are assembled at the site to intensify the protest against on Ambedkar jyanti. The protesters were carrying the photo of Baba Saheb to mark the day as " Save the Constitution Day". Akhilesh Govt fired arbitrarily on the protesters among whom women are in the forefront. Most of the women have injured. The firing is being done by the Inspector of Amwar police station Duddhi Tehsil, Sonbhdara, UP.
Condemn this criminal Act and join in the struggle of the people who are fighting against the illegal land acquistion and constructing illegal Dam on kanhar river.
Roma
Dy. Gen Sec, All India Union of Forest Working People (AIUFWP) /
Secretary, New Trade Union Initiative (NTUI)
Coordinator, Human Rights Law Center
c/o Sh. Vinod Kesari, Near Sarita Printing Press,
Tagore Nagar
Robertsganj,
District Sonbhadra 231216
Uttar Pradesh
Tel : 91-9415233583,
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All India Kisan Sabha
36 Canning Lane, New Delhi-1
kisansabha@gmail.com
18th April, 2015
Press Statement
Stop Police Brutality and Act Against the Guilty
The All India Kisan Sabha strongly condemns the police firing and lathi-charge on hundreds of Dalits and Adivasis who were peacefully protesting against the illegal construction of the Kanhar dam in Sonbhadra. In gross violation of the order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) the construction is being carried on and the police have once again unleashed brutality. It is to be noted that there was a firing on the peaceful protestors on Ambedkar Jayanti in which many people including women were injured badly. The Uttar Pradesh Government has not made any effort to resolve the situation or take action against the police. Details of the firing and prevalent situation are still coming in but several people have received serious injuries.
At dawn today the PAC completely smashed the two dharna sites where people were peacefully protesting. People were fired at and reports suggest that there were serious injuries on women, old and children. The PAC also forced entry into Sundari and Bhisur villages and vandalised many of the tribal houses and their other belongings. The situation is quite tense in the area and the attack is still going on in the village. AIKS demands that the police atrocities be stopped forthwith.
The AIKS demands immediate compliance with the NGT order by the Uttar Pradesh government and stringent action against those responsible for the illegal construction. It also calls for action against the police officers and other government functionaries responsible for the police brutality. The state government must also provide immediate relief, compensation and medical care to all those affected. The Kisan Sabha expresses solidarity with the people fighting resolutely to protect their land. We empathize with them in their suffering and express solidarity to their struggle. We will work in a coordinated way with our comrades to ensure justice is done.
Sd/-
Amra Ram (President)
Sd/-
Hannan Mollah (General Secretary)
—
Delhi Contact : c/o NTUI, B - 137, Dayanand Colony, Lajpat Nr. Ph IV, NewDelhi - 110024, Ph -9868217276, 9868857723,011-26214538
Lucknow contact : 222, Vidhayak Awas, Aish Bagh Road, Rajinder Nagar, Lucknow, UP
Dehradun Contact : c/o Mahila Manch, E block,Saraswati Vihar, Near Homeguard off, Kargi, Dehrdun, Uttarakhand. ph- 09412348071
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[E-Mail from NAPM]
Subject: Action Alert: Police open fired again in Kanhar Valley, Sonbhadra; Take Action! Demand justice for struggling adivasis, dalits and poor villagers!!
Date: April 18, 2015 at 5:19:27 PM GMT+5:30
Condemn Police atrocities in Sonbhadra!
Take Action! Demand justice for the struggling adivasis, dalits and poor in Kanhar Valley!!
18th April 2015: In less than 4 days of open firing at peaceful protesters in Sonbhadra on 14th April Ambedkar Jayanti, today again police wreaked havoc by shockingly open firing in the morning at the adivasis, dalits including large number of women in Kanhar valley, Amwar, Duddhi Sonbhadra, UP. Reports of rampage in villages Sundari and Bhisur have also come where houses are smashed and hundreds of people are beaten. While the exact numbers of deaths and people suffering injuries are not yet confirmed, it is reported that numbers would be quite high. This is clearly a planned brutal attack to crush people’s peaceful and democratic resistance against the illegal construction of Kanhar dam which will cause massive displacement due to forcible land acquisition.
Use of violence by the police and administration on agitating people is not new in Kanhar Vally. On 23rd Dec 2014 they were brutally beaten and false allegations of attack on SDM were made to victimise the leaders. There have been continuous attempts to harass people by the nexus between police-local land mafias to deny land and forest rights of hundreds of adivasis, dalits and poor villagers. On 14th, police fired at the gathering which left at least 6 women seriously injured and Adivasi leader Akku Charu who was shot in the chest is admitted in BHU lucknow. Despite constantly increasing number of force in the valley, including the PAC (provincial armed constabulary) and attempts to block people from joining the protesters, immense support has poured in from Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Gujrat, Uttar Pradesh as well as from Political Representatives, Political Parties, Activists, Scholars, etc for the struggle. Further, while efforts are underway to send a fact fining team so that actual happenings in the area can come out, today’s attack is seen as an attempt to stop this process of investigation, which would highlight wrong-doings of the culprits mainly the anti-people police and administration.
The proposed Kanhar Dam is controversial and subjudiced in High Court. Without conducting any fresh cost benefit analysis and social and environmental impact assessments, and violating the order of the National Green Tribunal dated 24th December 2014 which mandated Environment Clearance and Forest Clearance for any construction by Irrigation department of UP, the government is illegally going ahead with the construction.
We appeal to concerned citizens to demand immediate stop to this use of coercive force against adivasis, dalits, poor people and women in Kanhar Valley. Take action and ask the following authorities to punish the erring police and administration. Demand justice to the struggling people, including immediate medical treatment of the injured and reparation efforts towards the families of those who have been murdered by police machinery. Stop illegal construction of Kanhar dam and forcible land acquisition. Ensure land and forest rights of the people of Kanhar Valley!
Contact details of persons concerned in UP:
Shri Sanjay Kumar,
District Magistrate, Sonbhadra,
Uttar Pradesh
dmson@nic.in
Tele: 05444-222190, 05444-223001
Mobile: 9454417569
Shri Shiv Shankar Yadav
Superintendent of Police
District Magistrate, Sonbhadra,
Uttar Pradesh
Email: spsbr-up@nic.in
Tel: 05444-252614
Mobile: 9454400304
Shri Alok Ranjan
Chief Secretary
Luckno
Uttar Pradesh
Email : csup@nic.in
Phone : +91 522 2221599, 2238212
Fax : +91 522 2239283
Residence Phone : +91 522 2235133
Shri Ram Naik
Governor
Raj Bhawan (Governor House), Lucknow-226027
Phone +91-522-2620494, 2236497, 2236498 Fax +91-522-2239488
Residence Phone / Fax +91—2239488
Mr Justice U K Dhaon
Acting Chairman,
U P State Human Right Commission
TC-34, V-1, Vibhuti Khand, Gomti Nagar, Lucknow
Email: uphrclko@yahoo.co.in,
Tele: 0522-2305801 (O) 2207455 ( R )
Shri Arvind Kumar Jain
DGP Uttar Pradesh
1, Tilak Marg, Lucknow
Uttar Pradesh
Email: dgp@up.nic.in
Tel: 0522-2206104
Fax: 0552-2206120
Mob: 09454400101
Shri A. Satish Ganesh
IG (L & O)/DGPHQ
LUCKNOW
Email: iglo-up@nic.in
Tel: 0522-2208370
Mob: 9454400163
Shri Vijay Kumar Garg
DIG (Karmik)/DGP HQRS
LUCKNOW
Tel: 0522-2206901
Mob: 9454400182
Contact details of Chief Minister UP
Shri Akhilesh Yadav
Hon’ble Chief Minister
Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
Email: cmup@nic.in
TeLE: 0522 2236181 2239296 2215501
Fax: 0522 2236838 2236985
Contact Details of Chairperson NHRC and Home Secretary (Ministry of Home affairs)
Justice Shri K.G. Balakrishnan
Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission, Manav Adhikar Bhawan Block-C, GPO Complex, INA, New Delhi - 110023
E-Mail: covdnhrc@nic.in, ionhrc@nic.in
Fax No. 24651329
Tele: 91-11-24663247(O), 24651330
Shri L.C.Goyal
Home Secretary
Ministry of Home Affairs, North Block
Central Secretariat
New Delhi - 110001
Email: hshso@nic.in
Tel: +91 11 23092989, 23093031, 24673397
Fax: +91 11 23093003
—
National Alliance of People’s Movements
National Office : 6/6, Jangpura B, Mathura Road, New Delhi 110014
Phone : 011 24374535 Mobile : 09818905316
Web : www.napm-india.org | napmindia@gmail.com
Facebook : www.facebook.com/NAPMindia
Twitter : @napmindia
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FACT FINDING TEAM to visit to assess situation into the repeated Police Firing at proposed Kanhar Dam Sonbhadra - UP
Police firing done in Kanhar valley, Amwar, Duddhisonbhadra, UP on 14th April 2015 and 18th April 2015 (early morning) to disperse the agitating people (Dalit, Adivasi and other marginalised) who had stopped the illegal construction activity and illegal acquisition at the dam site. On 14th April 11 people were seriously injured including 6 women. One of them is in serious condition and admitted in Sir Sunderlal Hospital, BHU, Varanasi. On 18th April firing, many people are injured but till now death is not confirmed and we need to wait till the concrete report is available.
The two dharnaswhere the people were agitating. In these Dharnawomen were in large numbers who completely smashed by the PAC and agitators were lathi charged. The PACwas also on rampage in village Sundari and Bhisur where they have smashed many houses and beaten hundreds of people.
People of kanhar river valley have been protesting and had stopped the work at the dam site and were on the dharna from 14th April.
In this present movement against land acquisition, in proposed dam project, agitation is led by adivasiand dalit leaders. Women are in the forefront and leading the movement. After starting the dharna at the dam site the construction and the blasting activity were completely stopped. This step to stop the construction work was necessitated because stay order of National Green Tribunal was not honored by the district administration and they were continuing the construction and blasting activities.
The kanharbachaoandolan and kanhar bandh virodhisangarshsamiti decided to observe the Ambedkarjyanti at the dam site as a general assembly to protest against the unilateral approach of the UP Govt. As people started gathering early morning, police started gathering at the dam site led by local SHO Kapil Yadav along with heavy contingent of PAC provokingly attacked the peaceful gathering with lathi charge and bullet in which one tribal AkluChero was hit on chest and many were injured. But the people instead of getting scared challenged discourse which force the ‘police force’ to withdraw.
It was decided by many struggling groups and Delhi Solidarity Group that a fact finding team will be visiting the area to assess the situation that was officially communicated to DM, SP, DGP, Chief Secretary and Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. The team comprises of Kavita Krishnan, Priya Pillai, Abhishek srivastava, Purnima, Debadityo Sinha, DayamaniBarla. It seems that this attack is also to stop the process of dialogue and investigation of the incidents. The dam construction is also subjudiced in High Court. The construction activity should be stopped till the final verdict from both the HC and the NGT is announced which is most likely going in the favour of people. The current land acquisition going in the area is thoroughly illegal and it should be stopped immediately.
Fact Finding Team will observe facts at ground from people affected, movements and district authorities. Based on the observation of the team, future course of action will be decided.
We appeal you and all concerned citizens to support the movement and fact finding team and intervene in all possible manners so that people’s interest and welfare can be protected and preserved.
Looking forward for your cooperation, suggestions and comments.
Delhi Solidarity Group
In solidarity,
Sanjeev Kumar
Coordinator
Delhi Forum
Address: F- 10/12, (Basement), Malviya Nagar,
New Delhi INDIA - 110017
Phones: 011-26680883 / 26680914 / +91-9958797409 (Mobile)
Email: sanjeev@delhiforum.net
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India: Update from forest workers union regarding Kanhar dam Police Firing (20 April 2015) / Fact Finding report by Chattisgarh Bachao Andolan
http://sacw.net/article11088.html
