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Oustees raise voice against their 'Messiah'

Oustees raise voice against their 'Messiah'

Author: Navin Upadhyay
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: May 8, 2006

26 file affidavits saying NBA prevented them from accepting rehab ---- Bad news for Medha Patkar. As damaging facts begin to emerge in the media about the arm-twisting activities adopted by the Narmada Bacaho Andolan (NBA) activists to prevent the oustees of the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) from accepting the rehabilitation package offered by the Madhya Pradesh Government, even her own supporters have begun to turn against Medha Patkar.

As many as 26 displaced villagers have approached a Gujarat NGO, which is in the forefront of countering NBA's "misinformation campaign" and submitted sworn affidavits confessing they were prevented and persuaded by the NBA not to accept the rehabilitation package offered by the MP Government.

In their affidavit to the National Council for Civil Liberties, the oustees have expressed their willingness to accept the compensation package and said they would not side with the NBA is preventing survey and rehabilitaion work.

"In the past, we had received similar complaints from the oustees, but this is the first time we have received sworn affidavits on stamp papers. We are going to refer them to the Rehabilitation Commissioner of Madhya Pradesh," NCCL President VK Saxena told the Pioneer.

According to the documents available with the Pioneer, the oustees mainly belong to the NBA stronghold of Dhar and Badwani districts. The complainants oustees' are: Genda Singh (Kikarwas village), Aman Singh (Deher), Brajesh, Kailash, Gopal, Nanabai, Tarabai, Kashiram, Rajendra, Raghu, Daulat Singh, Gulab Singh, Hari Om ( all from Piplagarhi village), Rameshwar, Nanabai (from Piplagarhi villages), Ramesh, Om and Prabhu (Nimbola villages), Ram Singh, Lal Singh and Chandra (Malangao).

Bajesh Singh's affidavit paints a revealing picture of NBA's attempt to scuttle the rehabilitation work. The 40-year-old villager of Piplagarhi has disclosed that the NBA activists told him that they would not allow completion of the SSP and promised him better compensation if he sided with them.

"I came under their influence and we did not allow survey work for finalising the compensation. Now I want to cooperate with the survey officials and accept the compensation," Brajesh said in his affidavit, making it clear he was filing the affidavit without any influence or pressure.

In his affidavit, Genda Singh said the NBA did not allow him to accept compensation for his 22 bigha of agriculture land, which was going to be submerged after the construction of the Sardar Sarovar Dam. "We were misled by the NBA. Now I am willing to accept the compensation," he said.

There was one common theme in nearly all the affidavits: NBA activists misled and compelled the villagers to reject the MP Government package.

All these affidavits were filed after Medha Patkar sat on an indefinite fast protesting against the alleged failure of the Madhya Pradesh Government in carrying out the rehabilitation work. However, the affidavits show that while on the one hand, Ms Patkar was shedding tears over the plight of the oustees, on the other hand she was scuttling the State Government's attempts to provide compensation to the displaced persons.

Incidentally, as reported by the Pioneer, as many 228 FIRs have been filed against the NBA for assaulting and terrorising Government officials engaged in carrying out survey and rehabilitation exercise. The affidavits will further expose Ms Patkar claim to be the voice of the "oustees".


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