On July 17, 2019, over 300 armed men reached Umbha village, about 70 kilometres from the district headquarters of Sonbhadra in Uttar Pradesh, to take possession of 36 acres of land that was bought by the Pradhan (village panchayat head) Mr Yagya Dutt in 2017. Mr Dutt, who belongs to the Gujjar community, purchased the plot from from Adarsh Cooperative Society Limited. Mr Dutt accompanied the men to take possession of the land.
When the Gond Adivasi people living in the area protested, the armed men opened fire, killing 10 tribals and injuring 28.
The massacre was reportedly planned as over two dozen armed people were specially brought in from Jharkhand and Bihar to take possession of the land. The investigation carried out by the state government also found the police complicit in the crime as they did not take timely action despite knowing about Dutt's plan to attack the tribals.
The village residents told Land Conflict Watch that Dutt had been trying to take control over the land for the last two years. According to the survivors, they have been living and cultivating on the land since before 1947 but they do not have ownership titles. Dutt had settled in the village after migrating from western Uttar Pradesh some four decades ago.
In the past two years, he has made various attempts, including threats, to take possession the land. All 10 people who were killed, except for one, were young and breadwinners of their families. Their kin will now have to struggle every day, Ramraj Gond, who is representing the community in the court case against the accused, told Land Conflict Watch.
Local leader Hariram Chero from Dundi Assembly had written to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on January 14, 2019, stating that the land mafia in the area under the jurisdiction of the Ghorawal police station was planning to forcibly seize the land of the tribal people there.
The name of Prabhat Mishra, Bihar cadre's former IAS officer and former district magistrate of Mirzapur, has also come up in the case as the land was previously owned and purchased by him at a cheap price. According to Chote Lal Karwar, a Member of Parliament from the Bharatiya Janata Party, on December 17, 1955, then tehsildar Robert Sangaz sold 648 acres of land to Adarsh Cooperative Society. Even after the society's term expired in 1966, the land continued to be registered under its name. In 1989, Mishra, who was then the district magistrate of the region, got the land registered under the names of his family members.
Meanwhile, the state government has formed a special team to investigate the matter after a 1,000-page report was submitted to it by a committee of officers formed by the chief secretary of the state.
The government has also offered four acres of land to the families of the deceased, who have accepted the compensation. They made an additional demand for a school to be constructed in the village, which the state agreed.
Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Demand for legal recognition of land rights
Other Demand/Contention of the Affected Community
Dispossession of land
Region Classification
Rural
Type of Land
Private
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
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?
Yes
When did it end?
July, 2019
Why did the conflict end?
Community agreed to alternative offers
The state government has formed a special team to investigate the matter after a 1,000-page report was submitted to it by a committee of officers formed by the chief secretary of the state in July 2019. The government has also offered four acres of land to the families of the deceased, who have accepted the compensation.
Categories of Legislations Involved in the Conflict
Other
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
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
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:
Killing
Whether criminal law was used against protestors:
Reported Details of the Violation:
Date of Violation
Location of Violation
Government Departments Involved in the Conflict:
Forest department
PSUs Involved in the Conflict:
Did LCW Approach Government Authorities for Comments?
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:
Gujjars, Gond Adivasis
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?
Saurabh is a freelance journalist. He has worked with United News of India (UNI), Newstrack and 101Reporters. He was awarded the Lorenzo Natalie Media Award’s Grand Prize in 2017 by the European Commission. He has contributed to Firstpost, IndiaSpend, Newsclick and Newslaundry.
