On February 15, officials of Tinksukia district administration along with Northeast Frontier Railways (NFR) officials, Central Reserved Police Forces (CRPF), and paramilitary forces carried out multiple eviction drives in the Bogapani area of Digboi to clear Northeast Frontier Railways' (NFR's) land from encroachments.
Railway authorities demolished schools, shops, and houses. For houses that were located on Forest Land, eviction was conducted by officials of the Forest Department. During the drive a resident even begged on his knees to plead with the forest authorities to stop the eviction, as the children were appearing for their board examinations during the drive.
Officials said the eviction drive was carried out to make government land encroachment-free, and to facilitate NFR's electrification work from Bogapani to Makum. Students who are appearing for their examinations protested by studying under candlelights in the streets. Police and paramilitary force leading the drive lathi-charged alleged protestors for opposing the eviction.
Several locals were hurt amidst the altercation with the police and security forces, according to sources. However, according to Debajyoti Dutta, the officer in charge of Digboi police station, lathi-charge did not occur, rather the police had to push back the protesters as they tried to stop the NFR's eviction drive.
Affected houses were reduced to ruins in the drive. A few residents of the area who had approached the district court about the evictions, brought a stay order from the court for till March 15. Barring the houses which had received the stay order, the district authorities proceeded with evicting other houses.
Speaking to the media, one protestors said, "As you can see, it is so unfortunate that the students appearing for their board exams are protesting here and there is chaos among these families. We demand the government create a healthy environment for students to study and prepare for their exams."
NFR officials stated that they've been trying to clear the area for the past 10 years. NFR CPRO, Sabyasachi De has said eviction drives on railways will continue till all encroachments are removed from them.
The district administration, however, assured the evicted families of rehabilitation and compensation. Meanwhile, Digboi MLA Suren Phuken said he distributed Rs 25,000 each to the evicted families, who were eligible for a compensation.
A year after the eviction, however, some of the affected families claim they are yet to receive the Rs 25,000 compensation and the promised land for rehabilitation. According to residents, most of the evicted families have rebuilt their homes on the evicted land.
Phukan, however, claimed the administration has identified land for eligible families in the Ram Nagar area in Digboi. “Land for over 20 families is identified and will be officially handed over soon,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Forest Department has erected fencing to demarcate the boundary of the forest land in the evicted area.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Complaint against procedural violations
Demand for rehabilitation
Demand to retain/protect access to common land/resources
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Resettlement of the affected families
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Common
Non-Forest (Other than Grazing Land), Forest
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Details of sources (names of accused, names and numbers of any lawyers, names of any police officers contacted)
Status of Project
Original Project Deadline
Whether the Project has been Delayed
Significance of Land to Land Owners/Users
Residential area, Non-agri rural enterprise, Government or community-regulated urban commons
Whether the project was stalled due to land conflict
Source/Reference
Total investment involved (in Crores):
₹
Type of investment:
Year of Estimation
Has the Conflict Ended?
No
When did it end?
Why did the conflict end?
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Legislations/Policies Involved
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Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Whether claims/objections were made as per procedure in the relevant statute
No
What was the claim(s)/objection(s) raised by the community?
What was the Decision of the Concerned Government Department?
Legal Processes and Loopholes Enabling the Conflict:
Forced evictions/dispossession of land
Legal Status:
Out of Court
Status of Case In Court
Whether any adjudicatory body was approached
No
Name of the adjudicatory body
Name(s) of the Court(s)
Case Number
Main Reasoning/Decision of court
Major Human Rights Violations Related to the Conflict:
Lathicharge/teargas/pellets
Displacement
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
No
Reported Details of the Violation:
Lathicharge was used during the eviction drive, leading to the displacement of people whose settlements were removed.
Date of Violation
March 14, 2023
Location of Violation
Between Bongapani and Tingrai Railway station
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Deputy commissioner (Tinsukia district), North East Frontier Railway Tinsukia Division, North East Frontier Railway Maligaon
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
Yes
Name, Designation and Comment of the Government Authorities Approached
Corporate Parties Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Corporate Parties for Comments?
Communities/Local Organisations in the Conflict:
What was the action taken by the police?
How many people did the police detain or arrest?
What is the current status of the detained/accused persons?
Did the person face any violence while in police custody?
If any arrests took place, were the accused persons produced before a judge within 24 hours of the arrest?
If the accused was not produced before a magistrate within 24 hours, or not produced at all, what were the reasons?
Legislation under which the accused was charged
Was the accused person informed of their right to legal representation? Did the accused person have access to legal aid?
In cases where the accused person approached the court for bail, was bail granted?
Why was bail granted or rejected? If granted, what were the bail conditions and quantum of bail?
Were there any other notable irregularities that took place, or other significant details?
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