The Jabalpur High Court has pulled up the Superintendent of Police of Singrauli for not taking action on the complaint filed by the villagers on the forged Gram Sabha resolution of March 6, 2013.
Acting on a writ petition filed by Mahan Sangharsh Samiti (MSS) member and Greenpeace activist, Priya Pillai, the Jabalpur High Court passed an order directing the Singrauli SP to conduct an inquiry within seven days and communicate the outcome to the petitioner in the next 30 days.Members of MSS personally delivered a copy of the court order to the SP on Tuesday to ensure that the order has reached the right people.
Priya Pillai later talking to The Pioneer said, "The SP now has seven days to conduct a preliminary enquiry into the issue. If the enquiry reveals a cognizable offence, an FIR should be filed and necessary action should be taken against the police station in-charge of Maada who refused to register an FIR despite repeated attempts. If no cognizable offence is found, we should be given an answer in writing within the next 30 days."
Earlier in May this year, four activists from MSS and Greenpeace were arrested for peacefully opposing the marking of trees. "While the police dragged their feet in filing an FIR on the forged Gram Sabha resolution, they made no delay in arresting forest rights activists for peacefully trying to save Mahan forests," says Pillai.
This move comes as a silver lining for the community members of Mahan region and a bane for Essar's proposed coal mine in the forests of Mahan. "The Jabalpur High Court's order is a big blow to Essar's plans of mining in Mahan forests. In case an FIR is filed, it could mean that a fresh Gram Sabha could be conducted to decide the fate of mining in Mahan forests," said Pillai.
The Gram Sabha resolution in question is a forged document that was created to give a go-ahead to the mine in Mahan forests. On March 6, 2013, a special Gram Sabha was held on Forest Rights Act to give a go-ahead to the mine. Though the Gram Sabha was attended by only 182 people, a copy of the resolution acquired through Right to Information (RTI) has 1,125 signatures. The villagers have evidence that most of the signatures in the resolution have been forged.
The district collector of Singrauli had earlier gone on record saying that a fresh Gram Sabha on FRA would be conducted if he finds any discrepancy in the March 6 Gram Sabha resolution."Several months have passed since he said this and we still do not know the outcomes of the enquiry or the action the district collector has taken," said Pillai.