ON March 21, a big meeting under the banner of the CPI(M) Madhepura district committee was held at Rajni village where landless people have been living for the last 50 years on 300 acres of land. Patna High Court has also given its verdict in favour of these landless people. But a new claimant has arrived on the scene and with the active connivance of the local police, he along with his goons are threatening the people with dire consequences. But the residents are equally determined to save their land with red flags in their hands. The meeting was addressed by the state secretary, Lalan Choudhary, Central Committee Member Awadhesh Kumar and state secretariat member, Vinod Kumar.

Party is preparing to face the ‘bulldozer government’ by mobilising the people and organising a mass movement against the statewide eviction drive by the government.

The Bihar government has declared a war against the landless and homeless people who have been living for years on government bhoodan and surplus ceiling lands. In the name of the anti-encroachment drive, the poorest section of the state is under attack. A nexus of land mafia-corrupt bureaucrats under the patronage of mostly ruling party leaders are eying all those lands where landless people have erected their huts and even possess legal documents. Many such cases have been reported from Madhubani, Darbhanga, Begusarai, Khagaria, Saharsa, Gaya, Madhepura, West Champaran, etc. These people have been fighting continuously against such attacks.

SITUATION REMAINS GRIM

Celebration of  “ Bihar divas” with great pomp and show is not going to erase the failure of the present NDA government to provide basic needs to 80 per cent of the population who are struggling to survive on daily basis.

 Bihar witnessed large scale protests by the lakhs of students who have been preparing and taking the railway exam for the last three years. The volcanic eruption of students’ protests in Bihar shows the deep-rooted frustration among the students at large who generally aspire to get a government job.

The situation is quite alarming and the present government has no plan to address them. Though the Bihar government has announced that 2.50 lakh teachers will be recruited to fill up the vacancies right from the primary level to the +2 level, whether the announcement will fructify or not only time will tell.

In the background of this grim situation, the people of Bihar had expected that the NDA government will announce some relief measures to ameliorate people, but the budget proposal placed in the assembly in the ongoing budget session has belied those hopes.

The allocations for agriculture, education, health and employment generation under MGNRGES are meagre considering the enormity of challenges in all these sectors. Though there is much talk about investment in the industry but up till now, nothing has happened on the ground.

The MLC election from 24 constituencies has also created division among the different constituents of the NDA, VIP of Mukesh Sahni has fielded its candidates against the BJP and in turn, BJP has brought all the three VIP MLAs under its fold. BJP is working on its long term game plan to take the reins of power in Bihar on its own. In the coming two-three years, it will divide the JD(U).

RSS has announced that it will spread its wings in every nook and corner of Bihar which will create further space for the BJP to grow.

GROWING ATTACKS ON DALITS, WOMEN AND MINORITIES

 Attacks on dalits, women and minorities have become a daily affair. Recently two women and a man were done to death at two places in the Nalanda district. A 17-year-old girl aspiring to be a police constable was beaten to death in the Siwan district. All of them belonged to dalit and most backward caste families.

An auto driver was brutally murdered in police custody under Balthar police station in West Champaran district.

Recently the story of sexual exploitation of girls lodged in Gaighat shelter home in Patna has once again come to light. One such victim has openly accused the management of the shelter home of their complicity in allowing the outsiders to come inside for sexual gratification.