MEDHA PATKAR Vs. STATE OF M P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a Public Interest Litigation registered pursuant to a letter dated 26-7-2007 from District Jail, indore, written by the petitioner on behalf of the people affected by the Sardar Sarover project who, while agitating from their demands for rehabilitation were arrested and detained in the Badwani and Indore Jails.

(2.) THE petitioner has alleged that 26 women agitators and 1 child of seven years of age were brought from police custody of badwani at 4 a. m. early morning on 26-7-2007 and about 200 men agitators and 10 children were also arrested along with them using immense police force. She has further stated that they were all arrested at around 6. 00 p. m. on 25-7-2007 from the place of their agitation called Jamin Hak satyagrah for giving land to adiwasis, farmers, fishermen,labourers as per the Narmada water Dispute Tribunal (NWDT) award, the policy of the State Government of Madhya pradesh and the orders passed by the Supreme Court. She has alleged that all the agitators were forcibly removed from the place of agitation and women and children were badly beaten up by the Police and some also received wounds and that the banners, tents and other documents of the agitators were destroyed by the Police. She has stated that the agitation pertains to demands relating to the land, rehabilitation, compensation for loss of boats and thousands of motor pumps due to uninformed releases of water of upstream dams resulting in submergence of the land of the oustees and that the agitation was peaceful. She has stated that more than 2 lakhs people in different villages have suffered submergence in the jhabua and Badwani districts. Hence, adiwasis from the hills and mountains of jhabua had to take to agitation for establishing their rights to land for rehabilitation since 13th July, 2007. She has also stated that the Adiwasis and other farmers could not see any alternative when not less than 177 villages with 19 to 25 thousand families staying in the villages and two townships having a thick tree cover, temples, mosques, markets, schools, dispensaries, land and houses were to be drowned due to dam water. The petitioner has prayed that the right to agitation of Sardar Sarovar project affected Adiwasis, fishermen and labourers be protected and the arrested agitators be released and action taken against unjustifiable use of force and destruction of property and direction be issued to the authorities to guarantee the right to full, fair and timely rehabilitation before submergence and destruction of property.

(3.) THE respondents have stated in their reply that on 13-7-2007, about 200 agitators under the leadership of the petitioner organised a vehicle rally in Badwani town without any prior intimation to the District magistrate, Badwani and without any prior permission from the District Magistrate, badwani. They have further stated that after crossing Badwani town, the rally proceeded to village Bajatta Khurd situated on highway No. 26 at about 8 kms. away from badwani and on reaching village Bajatta khurd, all the agitators provoked by the petitioner occupied 100 acres of farm land belonging to the M. P. Seed and Farm Development Corporation (for short the Corporation) and Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa vidyalaya, Jabalpur and by the evening of 13-7-2007, they fixed tents on the Government farm land using iron pipes and wood logs belonging to the Corporation without any permission from the Corporation. The respondents have also stated in the reply that on 14-7-2007, the officials of the district administration along with senior police officials visited village Bajatta Khurd agricultural farm and advised the agitators as well as the petitioner to vacate the farm land and raise their grievance in a lawful manner.