Congress Accuses Centre of 'Full Throttle' Injustice Against Adivasis

The Congress has criticized the Centre's Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA) as undermining the Forest Rights Act and denying Adivasi communities their rightful governance. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accuses the government of reducing these communities to mere beneficiaries while dismantling the empowerment intended by the original law.

The Congress party has launched a scathing attack on the Centre, accusing it of undermining the Forest Rights Act through the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA). Congress leader Jairam Ramesh claimed on Friday that the initiative merely serves as a façade while denying Adivasis their fundamental rights and governance.

Ramesh highlighted that DAJGUA, by shifting authority away from the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, dismantles the democratically-driven structure established by the Forest Rights Act in 2006. He argued that these actions betray a form of 'Manuvadi' thinking that sees Adivasi communities not as active economic and political agents but merely beneficiaries.

The Congress maintains that the original aim of the Forest Rights Act was to empower Adivasi communities. According to Ramesh, the current government's policies are threatening to undo these democratic reforms, as seen with the new bureaucratic controls and engagement with technical agencies, which have led to massive claim rejections, such as in Madhya Pradesh.

(With inputs from agencies.)