Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of taking away “jal, jungle, and jamin” (water, forests, and land) from tribals and transferring them to two corporate entities, making the Adivasis homeless.
He criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for granting a loan waiver of ₹16 lakh crore to 22 industrialists while no relief has been provided for tribals, Dalits, and the poor. The amount was equivalent to the outlay for MGNREGS (rural employment scheme) for 24 years, as in one year, ₹65,000 crore is spent on the scheme, he said.
Speaking in the tribal-dominated Nandurbar district as his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra entered Maharashtra in its last leg, the Wayanad MP noted that tribals constituted 8% of the country’s population and vowed that Congress would their proportionate stake in the development.
“Our party’s government would carry out a caste census and an economic and financial survey, and also strengthen the Forest Rights Act that was ‘weakened’ under the BJP regime,” he promised.
The Congress leader pledged that his party’s government would include villages with over 50% tribal population in the ‘sixth schedule’ of the Constitution, preventing local decisions without tribal consent. “You (tribals) are the real owners of the country. Once we come to power, the Congress will carry out a caste census, followed by an economic and financial survey across the country. It will be a revolutionary step. We will have the exact data of each caste and its representation in the population,” he said, promising to introduce legislation to provide guaranteed Minimum Support Price (MSP) for farm and forest produce.
Six guarantees
In Delhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, accompanied by general secretary (Organisation) K.C. Venugopal and other senior leaders, announced six guarantees for Adivasis.
Also read: Congress drafts manifesto with focus on jobs, income support for poor
A national mission for the effective implementation of the Forest Rights Act (FRA) under Sushashan; undoing of the amendments to FRA and Land Acquisition Act (LAA) by the Narendra Modi government; enacting State laws in conformity with the Central Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act (PESA) to enable ‘Village government’ and ‘Autonomous District Government’.
The Congress also promised to extend the legal right of MSP to Minor Forest Produce (MFP) and revive the Scheduled Caste Plan and the Tribal Sub-Plan.
Asked if the party’s focus on tribals was part of a course correction after its loss in the tribal belt of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, Mr. Kharge told The Hindu that the Congress wanted to improve the economic status of tribals by “mainstreaming” them through education and empowerment. “We don’t do fake things but do real development,” he said.
Insights and promises
Back in Nandurbar, addressing the BJP’s alleged weakening of acts like FRA and LAA, Mr. Gandhi said they were committed to strengthening them and settling tribals’ claims within one year. He also accused the ruling party of wrongly rejecting thousands of claims under the FRA and denying tribals access to the jungles.
The ruling party used the word “vanvasi” (forest-dwellers) for the Adivasi or tribal population in India to deny the fact of their existence before the arrival of people of other races, he said. “‘Adivasi’ means you are the original owners of this land, water and the forest. The word ‘vanvasi’ does not come with such inheritance. The BJP keeps calling you ‘vanvasi’ but destroys your forests and gives them to (industrialist Gautam) Adani,” he said.
“While your share in the population is around 8%, do you have any representation in major corporate houses or at senior management levels in these private companies? Out of 90 IAS officers who allocate the country’s budget, only one is tribal. Of every ₹100 spent in the budget, the tribal officer can decide to use only 10 paise,” he pointed out.
He also shared insights from Gujarat during the yatra, stating that 25% of government-acquired land belonged to tribals, Dalits and backward communities, and questioned the development impact of taking away their land. “What sort of development is taking place by taking away your land?” he asked.
The Congress leader said that the net worth of 20-25 individuals, including (Mukesh) Ambani and Adani, equalled the collective net worth of 70 crore people in the country.
To mark the culmination of the yatra on March 16, Mr. Gandhi would visit Mumbai’s Chaityabhoomi, the cremation place of B.R. Ambedkar; the next day, the INDIA bloc leaders would address a public rally at Shivaji Park. The rally marks the kick-starting of the Maha Vikas Aghadi’s poll campaign.
