Sehore: Regarding the dispute over alleged tribal land encroachment in the Budhni area of Madhya Pradesh’s Sehore district, the BJP MLA Ramakant Bhargava came as a surprise headliner. In Yaranagar village, the team of the department, which was looking to nab tribal residents, was branded by the legislator with a severe rebuke that so brought the operation of the department to a halt, and they stepped back without any further action.
For the last eight days, the residents of Yaranagar, mainly tribal families that have been living on the land for more than 70 to 80 years, were harassed by the Forest Department, which had declared their land illegal encroachments. The villagers got frustrated and reactive and wanted justice, so they approached their local representative, MLA Ramakant Bhargava. They responded with the MLA’s visit to the village and meeting of forest department officials.
The officers were reprimanded by Bhargava, who accused them of causing trouble to the tribal residents without any prior notice. He demanded an immediate halt to the operation and asked the officials to vacate the site. And he told the villagers that he would stand by them and warned them he would protest in front of the Forest Department office in Bhopal if the harassment continued.
The BJP MLA also accused the officials of intentionally breaking the tribal population and violating their rights. A Forest Department official, however, said the actions were on orders from senior authorities. However, the ongoing operation was temporarily suspended after the MLA intervened.
The incident has also rekindled the tension between government agencies and local communities, asking whether land encroachment drives are fair or whether tribal rights are protected in the region.
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