The Girijana Aikya Vedika strongly condemned allotment of house-sites to non-Girijans in Koyyuru mandal, which were distributed to 299 beneficiaries at a meeting held at Baalaram village in Koyyuru mandal on June 17 by Tribal Welfare Minister P. Balaraju and BC Welfare Minister Baswaraju Sarayya.
The district committee of the Vedika sent representations to the Governor, who is custodian of the Girijans in the State, the Chief Minister, Principal Secretary, Commissioner of Tribal Welfare and District Collector of Visakhapatnam, demanding immediate cancellation of the pattas since granting pattas to non-Girijans was unconstitutional and against the interest of Girijans.
President of the district unit Lake Chittibabu said in the memorandum that Girijans in the State had been conducting agitations for a long time, even during the British rule and though the Indian Constitution provided them safeguards and rights through Acts like LRT (1/70), Article 46 and V Schedule of the Constitution, all efforts were being made to usurp the Girijans’ rights over the land in the Scheduled Area.
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Transfer of land in the Scheduled Area must be between the Girijans or a Girijan and a society consisting exclusively of Girijans but the Acts were being diluted and Girijans were losing their land.
The Girijana Aikya Vedika is also organising dharna in front of Collectorates and administrative offices of the ITDA in the State on June 24 against Mr. Balaraju on this issue and several other issues pertaining to Girijans.
Embezzlement of funds under NREGS for raising coffee plantations and silver oak trees; not allowing appointment of IAS officers as POs of ITDAs; allowing DEEs to function in place of regular DEs in the engineering department; and non-conduct of district-level meetings in other districts on Girijans’ problems are the issues it raised along with cases pending against the Minister during elections.
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It sought a CBI inquiry into all the allegations.