RANCHI: Following protest from the political parties from within and outside the ruling alliance in Jharkhand, Chief Minister Raghubar Das through a tweet on Monday said that it will file a review petition in this regard assuring that the State Government was committed towards defending the interest of the people living in forest areas.
The Opposition parties have alleged that the government is trying to evict local and indigenous people from their water, forest and land; giving it to capitalists of Maharashtra and Gujarat, who have bag full of money.
Notably, while hearing a petition filed by wildlife organizations on February 13, asked the authorities of 21 States to give affidavits explaining why evictions, wherever ordered, have not taken place.
The apex court also asked some states to pass orders for eviction wherever the rejection of claims under the Forest Rights Act has taken place.
"The Scheduled Tribes and other communities living in forest areas will not be displaced as the State Government is committed to safeguard their interests. The State Government, in the light of recent Supreme Court direction, will file a review petition in this regard," stated Das on his twitter handle.
JMM, Executive president and Former Chief Minister, Hemant Soren has alleged that the order has been passed from Supreme Court to evict locals from the forests, now the government will evict the indigenous people forcefully from the forest on the basis the law.
BJPs all-time ally AJSU on the other hand, also demanded that the State Government should intervene into the recent judgment of the Supreme Court in which directed to evict about 11 lakh indigenous people and other traditional communities living under forest area in Jharkhand and 16 other States from the forests.
"As per the record, as many as 27809 tribal populations along with 298 other forest dwellers will be affected," said AJSU Spokesperson Deosharan Bhagat. It is the duty of the State Government to safeguard the interests of these indigenous people living in the forests since several centuries, he added.