Bharat Adivasi Party MP Rajkumar Roat also targeted CM Bhajanlal Sharma’s visit, prompting a BJP cabinet minister to retort, “What did Roat do for the region during his tenure as MLA and MP?”
New Delhi – Rajkumar Roat, MP from Banswara-Dungarpur, Rajasthan, has once again raised questions about the current system by writing an emotional post about the ground reality of the country’s tribals. Citing a shocking video shared on social media, MP Roat wrote that when he raises the plight of 140-150 million tribals in Parliament, many people ask him, “What era are you talking about? Now the country is going to become a world leader.”
“The pain of being deprived of forests and land”
In his post, Roat clarified that tribals only want to see paper claims in the name of development, while their existence is actually under threat on the ground. Describing the plight of women from tribal areas of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, Rath wrote, “This picture is from our own country, India. This is the same India where leaders talk about ‘tap in every home and water in every tap’ and where respect for women is loudly spoken about.” He said that women are forced to risk their lives to extract water from deep wells 2-3 kilometers away from their homes. The MP further wrote, “Despite these adverse circumstances, the tribal people of this country do not expect much from the government. They simply want their forests and land not to be taken away in the name of development. Development for tribal people has occurred only on paper, while the situation on the ground remains the same. In the eyes of governments, development is defined as allocating land to industrialists for mining, setting up factories, and exploiting resources in tribal areas. Meanwhile, tribal people who talk about good education, health facilities, protecting forests and land, and implementing tribal culture, history, and constitutional rights are considered anti-development or anti-national. Currently, TV channels and street billboards portray the country’s development model, but the ground reality is completely opposite. Break free from false dreams and see, understand, and experience the struggles of tribal, Dalit, and poor people living in remote areas of the country.” Roat accused governments of exploiting tribals by granting land to industrialists for mining, while those who advocate for education, health, and constitutional rights are labeled anti-development.
It is noteworthy that prior to this post, Roat had sharply criticized Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma’s recent visit to Banswara. Roat alleged that the Chief Minister’s Dungarpur-Banswara visit proved to be a mere drama. The public was not even allowed entry into the night Chaupal. People waited for hours outside the administrative wall. The Chaupal was only for those who already had everything. The elected MLA of Chaurasi sought time through the Collector and CMO, but he was denied that. When even a public representative is avoided, who will listen to the tribal farmer who walked miles? Those whose lands were submerged and displaced by the Mahi-Kadana Dam have not received irrigation water to date, and now they are planning to divert the Mahi-Anas water 700 kilometers from the Scheduled Area. This criticism immediately sparked a political firestorm.
Tribal Area Development Minister Babulal Kharari hit back at Roat, saying, “Rajkumar Roat’s political ground is slipping, so he is making baseless statements to the public. He was an MLA for five years and is now an MP, but what has he done for the development of the region? He should answer to the public.”
Geetha Sunil Pillai
Courtesy: Hindi News