A huge number of tribal men and women armed with traditional weapons and sticks today took the busy VVIP Harmu Road to ransom in the presence of police, apparently to mark tribal icon Birsa Munda's martyrdom day.
The march, which caught the district administration off guard, was led by people against the government's bid to amend the centuries old land laws in the State protecting tribal groups from land transfer. It became unruly as the protestors manhandled some common men and broke windows of some private vehicles while tearing all posters and banners of BJP and CM Raghubar Das that came in their way.
The people gathered under one little known Birsa Munda Ulgulan Manch at Birsa Chowk and started their march towards Morhabadi Ground armed with daggers, hockey sticks, swords and trunks of trees, said eyewitnesses. The people were raising anti-government slogans seeking resignation of CM Raghubar Das for trying to amend the CNT and SPT Acts.
As the protesters progressed towards Harmu Road they tore banners and posters of CM Raghubar Das shouting slogans against the government. As soon as they reached the State BJP office at Harmu Road, the crowd became aggressive. According to BJP officials, youths among the protesters broke windows of cars and some even pelted stones and entered office and tore posters of Bhagwan Birsa Munda and CM Raghubar Das an hour before Union Minister Jayant Sinha was scheduled to reach there for a press conference.
Police swung into action soon and forces were deployed but by that time the protesters had destroyed the stalls of Modi Fest at Harmu Ground. They did not leave a single banner, poster in their reach to destroy on their way. Police presence could not make much impact as the protesters continued their march raising slogans blocking the VVIP road for over an hour.
Shops on the busy Harmu Road remained closed for about two hours fearing that the protesters would ransack them. The common man also had to suffer as vehicles remained stuck in long jams on Ratu Road, Kutchery Road and Harmu Road.
The administration that appeared surprised with the sudden event could not act swiftly. Officials said that they would mark and take legal action against those responsible. "No one has been detained but we will surely bring the guilty to book. An FIR will be lodged and based on footage of video recordings we will identify people who were responsible for the ruckus," said City SP Aman Kumar.
The City SP said that the administration had no knowledge of the protest and that too by people in such huge numbers. "They not only created disturbance in the city but also destroyed property. Security of BJP office has been tightened and we will see that the guilty are brought to justice," he added.
Union Minister Jayant Sinha also termed the incident quite "shameful and unfortunate".
later the crowd gathered at Morhabadi where lD Phones, a tribal leader from Delhi and human rights activist Gladson Dungdung addressed the gathering. "Government is in illusion that the tribals are cowards and think that they could stop us forcefully. They should not force us to impose blockade of the State. We will neither give land nor our lives," he said.
"Ulgulan has been our history, which could never be stopped. We will move forward from here till the changes in the land laws are not taken back," said Dungdung.