Congress on Sunday described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as "Adivasi Virodhi” (anti-tribal) and objected to the relaxations made in rules related to ensuring forest dwellers’ rights, saying that the move for 'ease of doing business for a "chosen few" will end the 'ease of living for the "vast many".
Party sources said Congress will oppose the changes – allowing settlement of rights of forest dwellers after the government clearance for diverting forest land for projects – in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament, starting July 18.
Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav clarified in a series of tweets that the allegation by Congress was "an ill-informed attempt to show that the rules don’t care about the provisions of other laws and that the government under Narendra Modi remains committed to protecting the rights of the Adivasis".
The new rules go against the August 2009 circular issued by the Ministry of Environment and Forests under UPA. It had stipulated that no clearances for diversion of forest land under the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 would even be considered by it unless rights provided under the Forest Rights Act, 2006 were first settled.
Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi tweeted, "‘Modi-Mitr’ Sarkar at its crony best! For ‘ease of snatching’ forest land, the BJP govt has come up with new FC Rules, 2022 diluting UPA's Forest Rights Act, 2006. Congress stands strongly with our Adivasi brothers and sisters in their fight to protect Jal, Jungle, and Zameen."
Congress General Several (Communications) Jairam Ramesh said, “this (new rules) destroys the very purpose of the Forest Rights Act, 2006 and its meaningful use while considering proposals for diversion of forest land. Once forest clearance is granted, everything else becomes a mere formality and almost inevitably no claims will be recognised and settled.” Expressing fear that the state governments will be under “even greater pressure from the Centre” to accelerate the process of diversion of forest land, Ramesh said in a statement, “obviously, this has been done in name of ‘ease of doing business’ for a chosen few. But it will end the ‘ease of living’ for the vast many.”
Responding to the Environment Minister Ramesh responded, "mantri-ji, please don’t evade the main issue—that is, are you not making the Gram Sabha irrelevant? You may not have been briefed properly. Your new rules go against the 2015 note of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs of Modi Sarkar..."
"These new rules have been promulgated without any consultation and discussion with stakeholders including Parliament’s Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment, Forests, and Climate Change," he said.
The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, popularly known as the Forest Rights Act, is a "historic and most progressive law passed unanimously and enthusiastically by Parliament", he said, adding that it confers land and livelihood rights—both individual and community— to Adivasi, Dalit and other families living in forest areas.
As per the 2009 circular, the rights of tribal and other communities have to be settled before a decision can even be considered on forest and environmental clearance by Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change. It mandated that free, prior, and informed consent of the families affected be obtained for such an exercise to be lawful, Ramesh said.
"This was done to protect and promote the interests of tribal and other communities traditionally living in forest areas," he said, accusing the Modi government of abdicating responsibility to ensure that the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 is implemented in a manner consistent with the Forest Rights Act, 2006.