BHOPAL: Panheti village, located near the Madhya Pradesh-Rajasthan border, has turned into a police fortress after houses of the OBC Banjara community were set on fire by a mob of Bhil tribe men on Tuesday. The attack was in retaliation for the killing of a Bhil tribe man during a recent clash over forest land.
Armed Bhil tribe men, traveling in several vehicles, stormed the Banjara community settlements in Panheti village under the Fatehgarh police station of Guna district on Tuesday morning. While the male members of the Banjara community were away working in the fields, the women and children fled their homes upon seeing the armed mob approach.
The attackers set fire to around 12-15 houses built by the Banjara community on the disputed forest land, as well as their vehicles, including a car. Unconfirmed reports suggest that some of the torched houses contained sacks of DAP fertiliser, which is currently in short supply across the state.
Visuals from the scene showed Bhil tribe men, armed with rods and riding motorbikes, threatening further violence against the Banjara community, even in the presence of police officers.
“They (the Bhils) numbered in the hundreds and stormed into our houses, forcing us to flee with children to save our lives. Later, they set all our houses and property on fire, leaving us with nothing,” said Dakho Bai Banjara, a woman from the Banjara community, describing Tuesday’s violence.
Upon learning of the incident, which left 15-20 Banjara families homeless, senior Guna district officials, including District Collector Satendra Singh and SP Sanjiv Sinha, rushed to the site with a heavy police presence. Police forces from seven to eight police stations have been deployed in the village.
Official sources said that the Bhil and Banjara communities had clashed in the same village on November 1 over possession of the forest land in Panheti village, located around 10 km from Rajasthan’s Baran district. The clash left two men critically injured, including Gal Singh Bhil and Kallu Banjara, who were admitted to hospitals in Indore and Bhopal, respectively.
Gal Singh Bhil, the injured Bhil tribe man, died during treatment at a hospital in Indore on Monday night. Following his death, Bhil tribe men attacked the homes of Banjara community members related to Kallu Banjara, who is also the deputy sarpanch of the village.
“Two cross FIRs were registered in connection with the violent clash between both groups that took place on November 1. A fresh FIR is being filed regarding Tuesday’s targeted violence. Heavy police force has been deployed in the village to prevent further violence,” SP-Guna Sanjiv Sinha said.
The ongoing friction between the tribal and backward communities stems from the dispute over possession of forest land. Notably, the Bhil and Bhilala tribes (originally from the Malwa-Nimar region of western MP) migrated to Guna district in the Gwalior-Chambal region decades ago. They are now present in large numbers in the Bamori and Chachauda assembly segments of Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia’s Guna LS constituency.
In September 2006, an angry Bhil tribe mob had attacked and killed Police Inspector V.S. Sapre, who was trying to prevent them from attacking the Meena community villagers during a clash over an alleged rape incident in Puranya Kalan village in Chachauda area of Guna district.