Latest news with #ZPSC
Hindustan Times
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Sangrur protesters' detention oppressive move, say farmer unions
Farmer unions have termed the police action as oppressive wherein around 400 members of the Zameen Prapti Sangharsh Committee (ZPSC) were detained while they were marching towards Bir Aishwan in Sangrur district to take possession of a big chunk of land, claiming it had no heir, on May 20. According to ZPSC, the 927-acre land, owned by the erstwhile princely state of Jind, had no heir following the death of its last ruler. The ZPSC has been demanding distribution of the said land among landless people under the Land Reforms Act. Manjit Singh Dhaner, president of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta-Dakaunda), said, 'The police believe this movement can be suppressed by force.' Joginder Singh Ugrahan, president of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan), said, 'The imprisonment is unjust and land ceiling law should be implemented, ensuring that land held by landlords exceeding 17.5 acres is distributed among the working class,' he said. SSP Sartaj Singh Chahal said around 150 members are still detained. 'It is preventive detention keeping in mind the law and order. Further action will be taken accordingly,' he said.
Indian Express
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Dalit activists protest on Punjab's Sangrur jail premises, demand 927 acres of erstwhile Jind Riyasat to set up ‘Begampura'
As many as 125 members of the Zameen Prapti Sangharsh Committee (ZPSC), who were arrested during a march in Sangrur on May 20, Thursday launched an indefinite hunger strike on the jail premises, demanding distribution of 927 acres of erstwhile Jind Riyasat be distributed among landless dalits to set up the proposed 'Begampura'. The ninth and last titular king of the Jind Riyasat, Satbir Singh, died in Gurugram in August 2023. ZPSC president Mukesh Maloud and finance secretary Bikkar Singh Hathoa alleged that the activists were forcibly stopped and arrested during their peaceful march to reclaim land in Sangrur's Bir Eswan village under the Land Ceiling Act. Months ago, the ZPSC — a forum of dalits members from Sangrur district — had launched an agitation to reclaim land at Bir Eswan village in Sangrur district. 'The land measures 927 acres. After the death of Jind Riyasat's last ruler Satbir Singh, ZPSC started an agitation, demanding to distribute the land among landless dalit families as the Land Ceiling Act prohibits ownership of land measuring over 17 acres. On May 20, we had planned an agitation at Bir Eswan but our members were arrested midway. While some were released late at night, over 400 individuals remain in custody and nearly 300 were jailed. As many as 70 labourers are being held in Sangrur jail, 35 in Malerkotla, 66 in Patiala, and 85 in Nabha, while nearly 100 women are detained in Bathinda jail. Disturbingly, the location of the remaining detainees remains undisclosed,' Pendu Khet Mazdoor Union president Tarsem Peter told The Indian Express. 'The administration is refusing to reveal where the rest are being held. This is a cruel and unacceptable act that violates every democratic norm,' said Peter. The ZPSC wants Dalits should be settled on this land and the area to be named as 'Begampura'. The ZPSC president alleged, 'The detained activists are being subjected to inhumane treatment. They are confined in overcrowded cells for 24 hours, denied clean drinking water, proper food, and even barred from receiving essential items and clothes sent by their families.' 'The hunger strike in the jail was initiated to protest the suppression of landless Dalit workers' rights. Of particular concern is the case of student activists, including Sukhdeep Kaur of the Punjab Students Union, who were detained for supporting the land rights struggle and were reportedly not allowed to appear for their scheduled examinations in jail, an act the Committee termed as blatantly undemocratic and tyrannical,' Peter added. Responding to the mass detentions, the Pendu Mazdoor Union has intensified its campaign against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government. 'The union has announced a state-wide protest, demanding justice for over 400 landless dalit labourers, both men and women, who were arrested. Many of them are either lodged in jail or untraceable,' alleged PMU general secretary Avtar Singh Rasoolpur. PMUpress secretary Kashmir Singh Ghugashor said, 'I condemn the government for siding with landlords and corporate houses by attempting to block the Begampura settlement, a proposed settlement for landless labourers on 927 acres in Bir Eswan village.' The Pendu Khet Mazdoor Union too demanded 'immediate and unconditional release of all arrested activists. Sangrur Deputy Commissioner Sandeep Rishi said, 'The land primarily consists of forest bed, with nearly 800 acres classified as such. Additionally, about 125 acres of arable land are under the cultivation of private individuals linked to the late kin Satbir Singh's ownership. The transfer of ownership from the kin to the government is currently under dispute. The matter is sub judice in the High Court. The court has ordered that the status quo of the property be maintained, which means that ownership has not yet been transferred to the Punjab government. Therefore, the ZPSC cannot claim it in the manner they want to, as the management of the nazul land is governed by specific rules.' In Jalandhar, Satpal Virdhi, former general secretary of Dera Sant Sarwan Das Ji Sachkhand Balan, the largest dera of the Ravidassia community, has written to Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, condemning the mass arrest of landless Dalit labourers and leaders of the Pendu Mazdoor Union during their peaceful movement to claim land rights on 927 acres in the abandoned village of Bir Aeswan in Sangrur. The incident has sparked widespread concern over human rights violations and the state government's response to longstanding demands for land redistribution. Echoing the union's concerns, Virdhi said, 'Such treatment to Punjab's landless dalits, rightful citizens of this state and country, is a betrayal of justice. The arrests are a shameful violation of constitutional rights.' Virdhi demanded the immediate release of all detainees, an independent inquiry into the arrests, and transparent engagement with grassroots labour organisations like the ZPSC. 'These people are not outsiders,' Virdhi wrote. 'The law (1972 ACT) promises them access to surplus land, yet five decades after the passage of land reform laws, the land remains out of their reach. These laws remain only on paper, and repression replaces rightful implementation.' He said, 'The demand for land is not a plea for charity, but a constitutional right. Landless people are equal citizens of India. They have every right to a home, a livelihood, and a future.' (With inputs from ENS Jalandhar)
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
A 1st in 16 years in Punjab: No 5-marla plots for landless, Dalit group tries to take forcible possession
Bathinda: Punjab govt is planning to acquire 24,311 acres of land in villages around Ludhiana for developing urban estates, but the landless Dalits of the state have now been waiting for decades for the same govt to give them possession of their share of common village lands or those belonging to the erstwhile princely state of Jind. This demand for land reached a boiling point on Tuesday, when close to 350 Dalit activists, including women from a group called Zameen Prapati Sangharsh Committee (ZPSC), were taken into custody over their call to take possession of 927 acres of land near Bir Aishwan sanctuary in Sangrur. Though contacted, police officers refused to comment on the arrests. The name of ZPSC translates to land possession movement committee. The call for action had come as continuous state govts in Punjab have been promising landless Dalits 5-marla (125-square-yard) residential plots out of their village's common land, but none has acted on it. The land in Bir Aishwan initially belonged to the erstwhile Jind and Sangrur princely state, but it later came under the control of certain companies and individuals, apart from some under the control of the state govt. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Tukarkan Bitcoin dan Ethereum - Tanpa Dompet Diperlukan! IC Markets MULAI SEKARANG Undo While making demands to distribute this land to the landless, ZPSC made a call to forcibly take possession of the land under the Punjab Land Reforms Act, 1972. The act was a reminder of what unravelled in 2008-2009, when Dalit labour group Mazdoor Mukti Morcha forcibly took possession of over 500 acres of land in various villages in Mansa and Sangrur districts. The state govt, after a few days, took back the land by arresting hundreds of activists. Apart from these two instances, Dalit organisations have been making efforts to get these lands vacated from panchayats or even taking possession on a small scale across Punjab over the decades. Lachman Sewewala from Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union said no govt in Punjab had implemented the land reform law, and no excess land permissible under the act was taken back from any person, nor was any land allotted to the landless under this law. "The govts or various authorities very conveniently prefer to avoid such issues," he said. In their action at Bir Aishwan, ZPSC had planned to build Begumpura (a concept originating in social thought, envisioning a society characterised by equality, freedom from oppression, and free from the constraints of caste, class, and social hierarchies). However, police conducted raids at the houses of leaders before May 20. Though leaders evaded arrest, a large number of activists started moving towards Bir Aishwan, and many of them were taken into custody. Dalit organisations have opposed the move of activists being arrested, and a protest was organised at New Delhi's Punjab Bhawan on Thursday to oppose the arrests. The protest was organised by the Delhi Committee of CPI(ML) New Democracy, attended by leaders from other left-leaning organisations, where some activists, including Aparna (President, National Committee, IFTU), Poonam (General Secretary, PMS, Delhi), and Rajesh (General Secretary, IFTU, Delhi), were detained. They demanded the immediate release of all ZPSC leaders and activists and the distribution of surplus public land in Sangrur to landless Dalits. Pendu Mazdoor Union president Tarsem Peter, general secretary Avtar Singh, and functionary Kashmir Singh Ghugsher said ZPSC was demanding the land originally owned by Jind State for the landless, but instead of listening to their voices, the state made the police conduct raids at the homes of leaders and arrested over 300 protesters when they tried to take possession of the land. "The govt should implement the land ceiling act and distribute surplus lands to the landless," said Peter. They also described the decision of the state govt to acquire over 24,000 acres of land as an assault on agriculture and environment. They said the state can acquire such huge tracts of land for industry, but is not ready to provide land to the landless.
