Flawed bid to clean up politics

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

The judiciary, in two landmark judgements delivered last week, severely restricted the right of criminal elements to enter electoral politics.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court, while disposing of two public interest petitions, took away the privilege of retaining their elective posts which convicted members of Parliament and state legislatures had enjoyed all along, holding it unconstitutional.

Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act lays down that a person convicted and sentenced to imprisonment shall be disqualified from holding an elective office for six years from the date of conviction. It, however, permits a sitting MP or MLA who files an appeal against his conviction to retain the elective post until the legal process is exhausted. The court ruled that different standards could not be applied to those who hold elective posts and those who do not.

On Thursday, the court, rejecting an appeal filed by the Election Commission, upheld a Patna high court ruling that a person in lawful custody, whether convicted of a crime or not, cannot contest elections as he does not have the right to vote while in prison and has, therefore, ceased to be an elector.

“The Law temporarily takes away the power of such persons to go anywhere near the election scene,” the apex court said.

Both the judgements were delivered by a two-member bench comprising AK Patnaik and SJ Mukhopadhyaya. Both involve interpretation of provisions of the Representation of the People Act, passed in 1951, ahead of the first general elections to Parliament and state legislatures, held during 1951-52, in terms of the Constitution which came into force in 1950.

Political parties which cautiously welcomed the first judgement as a step towards checking presence of criminals in elective bodies were forced to rethink their position when the second judgement brought home the wide sweep of the cleansing process they have set in.

The judgements have put a question mark over the political future of thousands of politicians who are facing prosecution in criminal cases or awaiting decision on appeals against their conviction. The court has made it clear that the new ruling will only apply prospectively. Convicted MPs and MLAs holding on to their seats on the strength of bail granted by courts are, therefore, safe for the present.

Thanks to an earlier Supreme Court judgement, it is now mandatory for candidates seeking election to Parliament or to state legislatures to file two affidavits, one listing their assets and liabilities and the other disclosing involvement in criminal cases, if any. The Election Commission puts the documents on the web, and print and electronic media report their highlights.

Accordingly, voters have access to information about the antecedents of the candidates but their criminal records do not appear to adversely affect their choice. In the absence of any reliable studies, it is difficult to conclude whether the voters feel intimidated or favour those with criminal backgrounds on the basis of narrow loyalties based on factors such as caste and religion.

According to the National Election Watch and the Association for Democratic Reforms, civil society bodies actively pursuing the goal of cleansing politics of criminal elements, 1,460 persons currently functioning as MPs and MLAs have admitted in their affidavits to being involved in criminal cases. This constitutes a little over 30 per cent of the total of 4,807 elected representatives whose affidavits were analysed. The criminal charges against 688 of them (14 per cent of the total) are of a serious nature.

As many as 305 MPs and MLAs of the Congress party (21 per cent of the party’s total) and 313 of the Bharatiya Janata Party (11 per cent of the total) are involved in criminal cases.

Seventy-four per cent of the MLAs of Jharkhand state, 58 per cent of those of Bihar and 47 per cent of those of Uttar Pradesh have criminal records. The small northeastern state of Manipur is the only one with no tainted legislator.

While the Supreme Court may have acted with the best of intentions, it has unwittingly provided unscrupulous politicians belonging to more than a dozen parties which wield power in the different states a means to subvert the democratic process. They can keep inconvenient rivals out of the poll arena by arresting them on trumped-up charges. This was, in fact, what the Jammu and Kashmir administration did from 1953 to 1975 to prevent estranged former Chief Minister Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah and his supporters from making a bid for power. -- Gulf Today, July 16, 2013.

Adivasi activist under CBI scanner writes to Home Minister

To
The Hon’ble Union Minister,
Ministry of Home Affairs,
North Block, Central Secretariat,
New Delhi – 110001.


Re: inquiry against me by the Ministry of Home Affairs through the CBI.

Dear Sir,

Greetings!

With due respect, I would like to bring your attention in a case of inquiry against me, which has been carried out by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), New Delhi through the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The Ministry had done the similar inquiry last year and I had given them all the required information despite that the same inquiry has been repeated to know whether I’m involved in any kind of anti-national activity and my association with the anti-national elements.

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has initiated second round inquiry against me. An officer of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Mr. Nirmal Kumar Birua visited my resident in the afternoon at 3:15 PM on June 23, 2011 and asked me about the activities I’m involved with, the source of my income, my association with the organizations and

He also recorded about my family background including the background of my parents, brother and sisters, the present status of my family members and about my present residence and present status.

He told me that the Jharkhand Unit of the MHA has to send a bulletin in every evening and the Delhi office has been consistently asking to submit a report regarding my involvement in anti-National activities and association with anti-National elements. However, when I checked it I was shocked to know that there is no such unite of the MHA exists in Ranchi but the MHA does all kinds of inquiry in the state either through the Intelligence Bureau (IB) or the CBI. In fact, I have put everything in the public domain and I’m always available in Ranchi the capital city of Jharkhand and also appear in the media (print and electronic) very often. I have been raising the issues of human rights and social justice and the allegations of my involvement in anti-national activities and my association with the anti-national elements are baseless.

The most surprising thing is, the MHA is not even aware about my association with the Planning Commission of India. Last month, I was nominated as a member of an autonomous body “Assessment and Monitoring Authority” (AMA) under the Planning Commission (Govt of India).

Hence, I feel that the MHA has been taking actions against me with the clear intention to coerce, humiliate and suppress my voice as I’m one of the outspoken persons from the Adivasi community.

Therefore, I request you; kindly stop all kinds of inquiry against me and also to take action against those officers who are trying to defame my credibility. I hope to hear you soon.

Thanking you.
Yours Sincerely,

Gladson Dungdung
Member,
Assessment and Monitoring Authority,
Planning Commission (Govt. of India),
C/o – Mr. Suleman Oreya,
Near Don Bosco, I.T.C. Gate,
Lane – 2, Khorha Toli, Kokar, Ranchi-834001
Ph. No. 0651-3242752 Cell: 09334449335

See also May 2010 article by Gladson Dungdung “Am I a Maoist”

Operation Mineral Hunt, not Operation Green Hunt

GLADSON DUNGDUNG
Countercurrents.org

After long preparation, debate and politics, finally the Indian government launched ‘Operation Green Hunt’ (OGH) in Jharkhand on March 10 with the objective of cleansing the state of Maoists. Though P. Chidambaram, the CEO of OGH does not use the term his officers di it shamelessly. Nearly 10,000 security forces consisting of CRPF, Cobra, Jaguar, STP and other groups have been deployed in the forests, choppers are roaming over the forests, schools are converted into military camps, forests are sealed and the combing operations are being carried out in the forests with the support of local Adivasi youth who are named as Special Police Officers (SPO), duplicated from the Salwa Judum theory of Chhattisgarh.

Since, there was huge media hype on Operation Green Hunt the Maoists fled the area much before the arrival of the security forces in the region. As a result, the security forces are targeting the innocent villagers. The operation has created uncertainty, brought threat to life and seized the freedom of the villagers, mostly Adivasis, in different parts of the state. The Adivasis who live in or around the forests and depend on it for their survival, are not allowed to enter or roam in the forests, the water sources are captured, the villagers are unnecessarily harassed, children are denied their right to education and the security forces misbehave woth the women. However, the billion dollar question is, is it really an operation to hunt for the Maoists?

The OGH concept itself is questionable. Theoretically, it is ‘Operation Red Hunt’ rather than ‘Operation Green Hunt’ as the Maoists neither look green nor depend on forests for their survival. It is the Adivasis who completely depend on agro-forests (greeneries). The government has been telling us for several years that the Palamu region of Jharkhand is the most Maoist- infested area. Presently, Simdega district comes under the same category but strangely the anti-Naxal operation was first launched in the Kolhan region. Needless to say the Jharkhand government has signed the most MoUs with corporate houses for establishing mining industries, power projects and steel plants. Obviously the anti-Naxal operations are being carried out in those districts (East Singhbhum, West Singbhum, Khunti, Gumla, Bokaro, Giridih, Chatra, Latehar, Ramgarh and Hazaribagh) where either the villagers are opposing the proposed projects or the government sees as an investment corridor.

Ironically, the government of India launched another operation on March 17 in the Chotanagpur region of Jharkhand, which can be called “Operation Mineral Hunt”. According to the latest report, choppers are being engaged for conducting an aerial survey to find out the existence of minerals in the region. Both the operations are being carried out simultaneously in the region by the government of India. Secondly, just a week after OGH was flagged off, the world’s second largest steel company POSCO announced shifting of its proposed 12 MT steel project from Orissa to Jharkhand, where it will invest Rs. 54,000 crore in a joint venture with SAIL in Bokaro. POSCO will have 60 per cent share and would get the Chiria Mines (2,000 MT reserve) easily for which the Arcellor Mittal Company was also bargaining hard.

The Chief Ministers of the so-called Red Corridor states are attending a series of meetings with P. Chidambarm on OGH on one hand and with the corporate houses for investment on the other. Of course, there is an investment competition going on among several states as the present era of development is measured on the basis of investment. Now the decline of hunger, illiteracy and malnutrition does not matter for the state. Therefore, one has every reason to believe that the so-called OGH is to clear the Adivasis' and other local settlers' lands for the corporate houses rather than to cleanse the region of Maoists.

Of course, the state is essentially batting for the corporate houses in the name of the Maoists and instead of creating peace the government is creating insecurity in the region. The Adivasis are in a state of uncertainty because of the way they have been treated in the country despite being the indigenous people. They always live peacefully and pay the heavy price for the development of the nation. The Adivasis are not against development but they don't want the foundation of development to be laid over their graves. In the present circumstances, the Adivasis are being targeted in each and every corner. They are the victims of both Maoist and state violence.

After kidnapping of Dhalmugarh BDO Prasant Kumar Layak, the Maoists had demanded release of innocent villagers from the jail. In response to their demand, Zonal Inspector General of Police Regi Dungdung publicly announced that the police have inflicted false cases against innocent villagers. Jasmi Mardi and Bahadur Mardi of Gurabandh village of Ghatshila were found innocent after reviewing their cases and released. Ironically, earlier, the police had portrayed them as Maoists, thrown them behind the bars and charged them under the sections 302, 120b, 349 of IPC, 27 of Arms Act and 17 CLA Act. The question is how can an innocent person be charged with such serious criminal acts? The Chief Minister also acknowledged that many innocent people were put in jail after branding them as Maoists.

The country faced a series of terrorist attacks, including the attacks on Parliament, Akshardham, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and 26/11. Our corporate Home Minister has now a different view of Jehadi terrorists. His latest discovery is that ‘Maoists are more dangerous than the Jehadi terrorists for the country’. The UPA government, therefore, wants to eliminate the Maoists before the completion of its present term. Of course, one can understand his position. The Jehadi terrorists have nothing to do with the minerals but the Maoists are very much associated with it. National and multinational companies are eying them but they are not able to establish their projects in the Red Corridor due to the people’s protests. The Maoists never hesitate to take credit for this. That is the main reason why the India government is ready to go in for unconditional talk with Pakistan but wants to eliminate the Maoists rather than go in for peace talks with them. It proposes a pre-condition peace talks with the Maoists to mislead the people.

Perhaps, history suggests that the Adivasi-dominated areas were never a matter of concern for the Indian state. fter liberalization these areas were identified as the haven for investment and projected as the mineral corridor. Meanwhile, the Indian state attempted to convert these areas into a corporate corridor by allowing the corporate sharks to enter. In 2005, the Indian government brought a legislation for establishment of the corporate corridor, which is called the ‘Special Economic Zone’ (SEZ) but it could not implementat the Act fully due to the mass protests. Finally, these areas were named Red Corridor so that the state can use the power of gun to convert it into Corporate Corridor. Licensed killings are very much welcomed, appreciated and even rewarded in our democratic setup.

The issue of Naxalism is four decades old. It emerged in the 1970s but the Indian state was not much concerned about it. When villagers stoned former Union Fertilizer Minister Ram Vilas Paswan and West Bengal Chief Minister Budhdev Bhattacharjee while they were returning from Bhumi Pujan (inauguration) of Jindal’s project in Midnapore district of West Bengal in 2008, the issue of Naxalism was brought to the centrestage. Finally, joint operations were called to cleanse the country of Maoists projecting them as the biggest security threat to the nation.

Operation Green Hunt is a license to kill the Adivasis who oppose the unjust development process, protest against state suppression and are determined to protect their heritage. It wants to transform the Adivasi lands into the corporate corridor, where corporate sharks will swallow the minerals and produce money for the country, making India a superpower with the blood of the Adivasis and other local settlers. All three economists, Montek Sigh Ahluwalia, Manmohan Singh and P. Chidambaram, are working towards Vision 2020 and they would do anything for it.

The India state sees the Maoists as a severe threat to the investment climate rather than a security threat to the nation. Our ruling elites want to suppress, shoot and bury the dissenting voice. They are more worried about the corporate houses than the communities, they are more concerned about GDP growth than feeding the country’s hungry people and they are more worried about the investment climate than the impact of the climate change. Those who are confused about Operation Green Hunt must realize at least now that it is not an operation to cleanse the country of Maoists but a hunt for minerals for the corporate sharks. It is Operation Mineral Hunt, my friends.

Gladson Dungdung is a human rights activist and writer from Jharkhand. He can be reached at gladsonhractivist@gmail.com
Website: www.jharkhandmirror.org

'Development via state terror in Jharkhand': Insaf report

The following is a report of the INSAF Fact-Finding Team which visited Kathikund in Jharkhand:

The state-repression culminating in police firing on people protesting peacefully on 6th December 2008 at Kathikund, Dumka District, Jharkhand was "un-called for, un-justified and, from all accounts, pre-meditated. The well-planned and systematic repressive measures adopted by the State Government appear to be part of a strategy to peddle development via state terror without any regard to Constitutional provisions and/or people's democratic rights to life, livelihood and determination". A Fact-Finding Team of the Indian Social Action Forum (INSAF) has thus drawn the conclusion after visiting the affected region on 20th & 21st December 2008, meeting various segments of society, and analyzing the data and documents.

The pre-announced people's programme to protest by courting arrest after paying homage to Shaheed Sidhu Kanu on 6 th December 2008 did not warrant such a heavy police presence and excessive use of force resulting in killing of one Lukhiram Tudu, and injuries to about 15 others. The district administration did not follow the procedures laid down in the police manual and opened fired indiscriminately on the protesting people without any warning. The use of tear-gas and lathi charge was resorted only to fulfil the regulatory demands. Even those village folks helping the seriously wounded in police firing were fired upon. Due to this Lukhiram Tudu was not provided timely medical aid and, thus, died of excessive bleeding. Police brutally beat up, abused and took into custody those who were taking the wounded to the hospital. The wounded were treated with contempt and inhumanly, even their bodies were dragged like dead dogs.

The stray incidents of people giving vent to their anger and frustration by responding to the police firing by resorting to use of bow and arrow prima facie appears to be a result of extreme provocation by the police on an otherwise peaceful protest.

Varying figures are being given for those seriously injured or wounded. Not less than 15 persons may have sustained bullet injuries. The INSAF Team found and met one person with bullet piercing his right shoulder and coming out from the back. He told the team that he was helping Shiv Lal, another wounded in police firing, and was bent upon him, when he got hit by the bullet. Terrorized he is getting local treatment in the village itself, but his spirits are high.

The people's peaceful protest against their land acquisition for building dam for power plant is two-and-a-half years old, but took definite shape after notices were published in early May this year for acquiring about 264 acres of land in two villages of Aamgachi and Pokhariya. The INSAF Team visited five such villages and found all inhabitants united in their resolve to protect their land -- only means of life and livelihood – in the absence of any development. Neither any political ideology nor any political organisation was responsible for people's determination, except the issue of their survival and sustenance.

The INSAF Team came across a unique example of co-operative farming in Jangla Village by people's own initiative without any government assistance, where 60 to 70 families had pooled some 50 acres of land. The field was green and yellow with blooming Sarson plants and vegetables. The village Manjhiram named Lal Kisku was responsible for motivating them, who have developed such a sustainable agricultural farming that it could provide deep insights to the Agricultural Scientists.

Unfortunately, such creative intervention and indigenous initiative of the people have gone un-noticed by the local MLA, Sri Nalin Soren, who happens to be the Agriculture Minister in the State Government.

While people are firm in their resolve not to leave their land for the so-called development, the politicians and bureaucrats have utterly failed to protect the right to Life, Liberty & Livelihood of the people. On the contrary, the people of the region believe that there is a clash between the Constitutional Obligations and private vested interests of the politicians and bureaucrats. Not only the people's consent has not been obtained for the so-called development by the State which is mandatory under the law of the land, but the statutory institutions like Gram Sabha and procedures for Scheduled areas under PESA are being flouted in letter and spirit. The formation of the Tribals Advisory Council under the Vth Schedule in 9 states has been criminally and deliberately delayed as no rules and regulations have been formed, as yet.

The deliberate falsehood about "Maoist's linkage" is mischievously and systematically spread by the official machinery which appears to be serving the commercial interests over against the people's welfare. This seams to be the tirade and new found mantra of the State subservient to the national and international capital for defaming and repressing the people's initiative and movements in protecting their fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution of India, especially the right to life, liberty and livelihood. The people's upsurge in the region is also linked to the historical and cultural roots in collectively protecting and using the land, water and forest (jal, jangal aur jameen).
The arrest and harassment of Woman Social Activist, Munni Hansda and her co-activists and continued incarceration is part and parcel of their larger strategy of the State machinery to silence the voices of dissent and protest against usurping of people's resources for survival and sustenance under the globalization agenda. INSAF Team found out that five criminal cases have been already filed against Munni Hansda and others prior to her illegal detention on 26th November, 2008, but no arrest was made, although she was freely available in the region. The present case related to a motor/cycle warrants only action under The Motor Vehicles Act, but the authorities seem to have even invoked action u/s 392 i.e. dacoity. Therefore, the detention of Munni Hansda appears to be a deliberate act of provocation and prejudice by the police administration.

INSAF demands that normalcy be restored in the region, proper independent and high level enquiry be instituted in the incident of 6th Decmber, 2008, and appropriate action be taken against officials found guilty of indiscriminate police firing. Immediate medical aid should be provided to the injured/wounded. Adequate compensation should be given to all affected people. Land acquisition process should be withheld and statutory provisions under laws of the land like PESA should be strictly applied and followed. Criminal cases instituted against the social activists, people's leaders and people should be reviewed by officials and agencies with credibility. Till such time, all detained be released on bail. Further harassment and repression be immediately brought to an end.

Chittaranjan Singh
Dayamani Barla
Sheikh Ansar
Rajendra K. Sail
On Behalf Of INSAF FACT-FINDING TEAM (INDIAN SOCIAL ACTION FORUM)
(124-A/FF, Katwaria Sarai, New Delhi-110 016:
E-mail: insaf@vsnl.com)

INSAF is a forum of about 750 social action groups, social movements, NGOs and intellectuals drawn from all over the country committed to resisting globalization, combating communalism and defending democracy.

Murder of activist Lalit Mehta in Jharkhand: demand for CBI probe

The following is a message received from the Rights Support Centre (humanrights.movement@gmail.com)

Dear Friends,

This has reference to Lalit Mehta's murder at Palamau in Jharkhand. Lalit was a full-time activist of the Right to Food Campaign, Jharkhand, and Gram Swaraj Abhiyan, Jharkhand and secretary of Vikas Sahayog Kendra, a local organization operating in the Palamau, Garhwa and Latehar districts.

Lalit’s life was snuffed out on 14 May, 2008. He was barely 36. Lalit leaves behind his wife Ashrita, who is an activist and teacher, and two sons aged four and two.

Lalit was a committed activist, who fought relentlessly for implementation of government programmes, especially those related to food, employment and child rights. He along with local people has been demanding the implementation of the Public Distribution System and the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) entitlements.

Lalit was killed for raising his voice against corruption in the implementation of the Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in Palamau. He was helping a team of volunteers led by noted economist and Right to food activist Prof. Jean Dreze to conduct a social audit of NREGA works in Chainpur and Chatarpur blocks of Palamau district.

It is indeed ironical that Rights -- which are guaranteed by the Constitution and by various statutes, programmes and budgetary allocations and reinforced by the Supreme Court of India as legal entitlements -- do not get implemented by the authorities responsible for it. In this situation, the task of implementation often falls on the shoulders of people, of right holders and of civil society organizations. And when such democratic forces seek the implementation of these Rights under the Rule of Law framework, vested interests gang up with the bureaucracy and commit such brutal murders and get away.

Lalit's murder is not the first such instance. Many activists have lost their lives for raising their voices against corruption and standing by poor people. The list is long – Satyendra Dubey, Sarita and Mahesh, S. Manjunath, Mahendra Singh, Chandra Shekhar. Lalit's death is another link to that chain.

There is an environment of fear and tension constantly created by the nexus of local contractors, middlemen, bureaucrats and politicians. Activists voicing against human rights violation and against displacement and fighting for the right to food and livelihood are being threatened and harassed.

Friends, if this murder was an act of intimidation, it did not succeed. Friends and supporters from all over Jharkhand and other places came together and have formed a state-level platform named Daman Evam Bhrashtachar Virodhi Sangharsh Samiti (Anti repression and corruption struggle committee). A number of organizations and individuals have condemned Lalit's murder and demanded a CBI enquiry. Letters have been written to the Chief Minister of Jharkhand.

The Samiti launched its campaign against Lalit Mehta's murder with a dharna (sit-in protest) in Ranchi, the State capital on Sunday, May 25. On May 26 a massive public hearing was organized in Chatarpur, which was attended by NREGA Council members Anne Raja and Jean Dreze.

The Samiti supports the demand for a CBI enquiry into the murder. It has planned a State-level rally and public meeting in Ranchi on June 10 to mount pressure on the State government for the purpose. We appeal all social activists, human rights activists and masses to join the rally to demand a CBI enquiry into Lalit's murder and come together in solidarity in the struggle for Justice.

On June 11, the Samiti will hold a seminar on "Social Activism vis-a-vis Backlashes and Threats" in Ranchi.

In Solidarity,

Balram, Gopinath Ghosh, Gurjeet, Byomkesh
on behalf of Daman Evam Bhrashtachar Virodhi Sangharsh Samiti, Jharkhand

Jharkhand activist Jiten Marandi arrested

Jiten Marandi, a leading cultural activist of Jharkhand and Secretary of the New Delhi-based Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners (CRPP), was arrested at Ranchi on Saturday.

The CRPP, in a statement, demanded that he be released immediately and unconditionally.

The following is the text of the statement, issued on Sunday:

The Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners condemns the arrest and detention of Jiten Marandi at Ratu road, Ranchi, yesterday (05/04/08) around 4.45 pm by the Intelligence Bureau. As per the limited information from the civil rights circles in Ranchi and other places, he was initially kept in the Sukhdev Nagar police station throughout the night and has been tortured by the police. Of late the Intelligence Bureau has admitted having arrested him while refusing to disclose where he has been confined.

The arrest was done without any proper warrant and till now he has been confined in police custody. The Intelligence Bureau has so far refused to frame charges against him. The Superintendent of Police has been maintaining that he is being questioned. This gives the police ample room to resort to any form of torture. It is the fundamental right of the detained to take the help of a lawyer, to be in touch with his kith and kin so as to ensure that he is being defended properly in the court. By delaying his production in the court the police and the Intelligence agencies are criminally preventing him from exercising his right to use the natural principles of justice as is ensured by the Constitution of this country.

In the meantime the police have been diligently feeding the media with stories so as to prejudice his natural right to be presumed innocent before conclusively being proved guilty on any proper charges filed against him. Neither there is any case pending on him nor has the police declared his arrest and framed charges. But the media is already agog with stories of his alleged involvement in the murder of the former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi's son in the Chilkari incident. We condemn strongly such incriminating tendencies of the media, ably promoted by the police so as to implicate Jiten Marandi even before he is booked under any proper charges which should be duly contested in the court. This is not an isolated incident. We see a definite pattern of impunity in reporting of the media in all such instances by becoming a handy tool in the hands of the police and the intelligence agencies. It goes against the right of the detainee to be presumed innocent till proven guilty as is guaranteed by Article 14 (2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which India is also a signatory.

Jiten Marandi is a leading cultural activist of Jharkhand who has been steadfast in raising songs of protest against all forms of exploitation of the poorest of people in one of richest of States in India in terms of its mineral and forest wealth. He is also one of the Secretaries of the Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners, the inaugural conference of which had just got over on March 31 and April 1, 2008 in New Delhi.

Jiten Marandi's songs have given vent to the anger of those people who have been at the receiving end of the policies of loot and plunder that is being promoted by the Indian state in Jharkhand through several Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) signed with multinational corporations and Indian big capital. He is an intellectual who has fearlessly expressed his political opinion, as is evident from his recent writings on the Naxalite movement in India in the Hindi newspaper Prabhat Khabar.

The Committee asserts that Jiten Marandi has every right as is due for any citizen in a democratic country to express his/her political opinion without fear or favour.

We strongly condemn the authoritarian attitude of the state to stifle and browbeat any form of political opinion or dissent. WE DEMAND HIS UNCONDITIONAL RELEASE.
In protest and in solidarity with the detained,

Gurusharan Singh, President
Prof. Amit Bhattacharyya, Secretary General
SAR Geelani, Vice-President
Rona Wilson, Secretary, Public Relations