MARGAO
Protesting over the police crackdown at Melauli, a host of Scheduled Tribes organisations have warned the government to stop harassing the tribal people or brace up to face the fury of the people.
Armed with banners and placards, representatives of these organisations descended at the Margao Municipal garden to warn that tribal people from across the State will come out in support of their counterparts from Melauli, while calling upon the government not to thrust the project down the throat of the poor people.
Police inspector Sagar Ekoskar came in for severe criticism from the organisations for allegedly stamping on the chest of a 60-year-old tribal woman at Melauli on Wednesday.
GAKUVED Federation president Rupesh Velip condemned the police action against the unarmed tribal people opposing the IIT project. He accused the police for trying to grab the land belonging to the Mull Goemkars, warning that the government will not succeed in breaking the people’s movement.
John Fernandes of Quepem Adivasi Sanghatana demanded to know why the government is only insisting on the Melauli land to set up the proposed IIT when lakhs of square metres of land acquired by the government for the Food Park is lying idle.
Activist Rama Kankonkar warned the Health Minister that it will not take much time for the tribal people from Tiswadi to come to his office at Dona Paula. “You want to register attempt to murder cases on hapless tribal people of Melauli. We the tribal people from Tiswadi will not sit quiet and watch our brothers and sisters being harassed and victimised by the government through the police,” Kankonkar warned.
He further warned that the ST organisation will awaken the tribal people from across the State for the atrocities committed against the women in Melauli. “We want the ST Commissioner to act in the matter. If the Commissioner does not act, we know how to deal with the situation,” he warned.
Goencho Ekvott women wing leader Sandra Rodrigues said the battle in Melauli is not just a battle of the tribal women, but women from all communities. “How can a police officer stamp on the chest of a 60-year-old woman? We all women will take the movement forward,” she warned.
Ramkrishna Jalmi and members of the Popular Front of India, besides representatives of the National Confederation of Human Rights organisations also participated in the protest.
