Politics Guilty of Perpetuating Maiost Insurgency
Former director general of the Border Security Force (BSF) EN Rammohan tells The Quint that the increasing spate of Maoist attacks will continue to rise till tribals get their due rights.
In a free-wheeling chat, Rammohan explains socio-economic factors lie at the heart of the Maoist insurgency in India. While Rammohan gives the powers that be a dressing down, he also makes a strong argument for the implementation of the fifth schedule of the Indian Constitution.
Attacking the Raman Singh government in Chattisgarh, Rammohan argues that the Chief Minister has unceremoniously taken away mineral-rich land from the tribals, distributed it to industrialists and allegedly filled his own coffers. He also claims that the dispersed tribals are given neither land nor compensation.
What is the 5th Schedule?
The fifth schedule of the Indian Constitution deals with the ‘Administration and Control of Scheduled Areas and Scheduled Tribes’. The law applicable to Scheduled Areas states,
(1) Notwithstanding anything in this Constitution, the Governor may by public notification direct that any particular Act of Parliament or of the Legislature of the State shall not apply to a Scheduled Area or any part thereof in the State or shall apply to a Scheduled Area or any part thereof in the State subject to such exceptions and modifications as he may specify in the notification and any direction given under this sub-paragraph may be given so as to have retrospective effect.
(2) The Governor may make regulations for the peace and good government of any area in a State which is for the time being a Scheduled Area.
Rammohan argues that the scheduled areas ought to be governed by the panchayat which will report directly to the state Governor who will then report to the President of India. The Chief Minister or his cabinet thus have no jurisdiction, as per law. However, Rammohan alleges that there is a covert understanding between the Governors and the state government and thus whatever is happening is illegal and a violation of the Constitution.
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