Date:08/01/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/01/08/stories/2009010857250100.htm

Front Page

Dalit labourers seek justice

Mohamed Imranullah S.

MADURAI: E. John (45) of Kodaikanal is one among the 157 bonded labourers rescued by the Dindigul district administration way back in 1986 from a company that exploited tropical trees yielding dye, timber and medicinal products.

Even after two decades, he and a section of his Dalit brethren living in Viduthalai Nagar near Gundupatti in the hill station could not freely enjoy two acres of agricultural land gifted by the Government to each of them.

The properties of this uneducated lot have either been encroached upon by land grabbers or under the control of moneylenders. Frequent harassments by the perpetrators and alleged inaction on the part of the officials concerned have left these labourers high and dry.

With over half his land encroached upon, Mr. John had been struggling for more than a decade to retrieve his property. “I am paying the tax and someone else is enjoying the benefits. I am at a total loss now,” he said.

Acting on a representation given to the Collector during a public grievances redressal meeting in 1999, a Revenue Divisional Officer held that the property belonged to Mr. John. But he was asked to seek remedy through the police or the court.

“A complaint lodged with the police was of no use. In the meantime, another person has encroached upon the other part of my property and dug up a well. I cannot afford to conduct civil cases against these encroachers,” he rued.