CPI(ML) and All India Kisan Mahasabha activists held a one-day dharna on May 25 at the Bichhiya protest site at the Chandauli district headquarter in UP under the slogan “Save land, farming and farmers, end the rule of loot, repression and destruction.” The protest demanded the cancellation of the fraudulent land consolidation process in Guraini and Dhanapur, fresh consolidation proceedings, urgent measures to stop Ganga erosion, and justice for Dalit and poor families whose land rights are being attacked by the nexus of consolidation officials and land mafia.
The protesters submitted a 12-point memorandum to the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Sadar, who reached the dharna site as the representative of the District Magistrate.
Addressing the dharna, CPI(ML) State Standing Committee member and Chandauli District Secretary Comrade Anil Paswan said that consolidation officials and land mafia forces have carried out large-scale manipulation in the consolidation process. He said land meant for schools, anganwadi centres, playgrounds and public projects in Guraini has been wrongly allotted near the Ganga, where it is being swallowed by river erosion. In Bijhwal, naveen parti land has been carved out in favour of land mafia forces without notice to the Gram Sabha.
He said that 26 acres of land belonging to Amar Veer Inter College has been reduced to 17 acres through consolidation fraud, even though institutional land cannot be cut in this manner. These irregularities prove that land mafia forces and consolidation officials are colluding to loot land. The entire process must be cancelled and restarted.
AIKM District President Comrade Shravan Maurya said that villages from Narauli to Jigna are facing severe Ganga erosion, pushing thousands towards displacement. He warned that if the government fails to stop Ganga erosion, a bigger movement will be launched.
CPI(ML) leader Comrade Rampyare Ram said farmers in Dhanapur are uniting under the banner of Kisan Mahasabha, and the struggle against land loot, displacement and anti-farmer policies will intensify.
The dharna also demanded revenue entry of pattas given to 14 Dalit families of Narauli, repair of the Nangwa-Guraini-Virasarai pump canal to ensure water till the tail end, and an answer from the consolidation department on the missing 9 acres of Amar Veer Inter College land.
