New Delhi, Dec. 13: BJP's Khunti MP and former deputy Speaker in the Lok Sabha Kariya Munda, 78, today sharply criticised his party's government in Jharkhand on two fronts, "forcing" amendments in Chotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) and Santhal Pargana Tenancy (SPT) Acts through the Assembly without debate and not clearing doubts from the minds of the tribal masses about the changes.
"Neither was I consulted on the (initial) ordinances or the amendments, nor have I received a copy of the amendments yet. I don't know what the amendments exactly mean. Many MLAs are also unaware," the eight-time tribal BJP MP known for his clean image and simplicity told this correspondent in Delhi.
Amendments to the CNT and SPT Acts, passed in the state Assembly on November 23, make it easy to convert land use from agricultural to commercial and allow the state access to protected land for specific public projects.
A Union minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, Munda, who still ploughs land in his Anigara village, Khunti, a Naxalite-hit area, without security cover when he is not attending Parliament, said this was the first time senior leaders were not consulted before such an important policy change.
He added the BJP should have made people aware of the benefits that chief minister Raghubar Das said the amendments would bring. "The government has to remove doubts in the minds of tribals, 90 per cent of whom are peasants working on land. Otherwise Jharkhand won't be peaceful," he cautioned.
A veteran politician, Munda joined Bharatiya Jan Sangh in 1970, which later merged into Janata Party from which the BJP emerged. The man who wrote the script of 2005 Birsa Munda biopic Ulgulan-Ek Kranti, knows it was after Birsa's uprising that the British promulgated the CNT Act to protect tribal land from encroachment.
"The government must explain why laws (CNT and SPT) were amended, because schools have been built and shops have run even before the changes. Till date, the CM has made no attempt to explain how the amendments will help tribals, how their land will stay safe. If the government talks, then we tribal leaders can talk," Munda said.
On ongoing protests, he said people were opposed to amendments as they were passed in three minutes without a debate. "In a democracy, we debate. MLAs propose amendments; these are examined. Vidhan Sabha should have had detailed proceedings. Laws are not passed everyday," the veteran parliamentarian said.
Concerned over the present scenario of mistrust, he said: "A wrong message has been sent, that the state has turned against tribals...You can't anger the masses and do industrialisation. We cannot implement laws without taking people into confidence."
Munda also pointed out why most tribals feel alienated from the state's industrial dream.
"Most of us are not technically skilled to work in industries. Every district does not have an industrial training institute. Shouldn't the government first build adequate technical education infrastructure to create a situation in which tribals can participate in industrialisation? Otherwise, we will just stare at factories built on our land and outsiders will get jobs. What is our share in an industrial society?" asked Munda.
He added that tribals had a cultural and religious link to land. "If you take it away, it is natural they (people) will get angry... If I am kicked out of my land, where will I go? I don't have an answer. People protesting are asking this question. The CM has to give answers," he said.
Recently, former BJP chief minister Arjun Munda also wrote an open letter to the chief minister, pointing out how the amendments would gradually dilute traditional rights to land.
