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September 24 2006
Madhu Koda govenment in Jharknad today expanded his cabinet by inducting
both the MLAs of United Goans Democratic Party (UGDP) as ministers. Madhu
Koda hopes that his move will contribute towards providing much needed
stability to his week long government after Arjun Munda government was
toppled last week.
The Goa political party has total of two seats in the 80 member Jharkhand
Assembly. Koda government had won the vote of confidence of the assembly few
days ago with 41 votes in its favour and sole CPI-ML MLA voting against the
government. The rest of the NDA team boycotted the confidence motion. That
means if UGDP withdraws its support then the government here will be reduced
to minority. Madhu Koda himself came to the assembly as an Independent MLA
and he is so till date even after occupying Chief Minister's position.
The change in governments have come about in Jharkhand at a time when the
erstwhile Arjun Munda government had signed nearly 50 Memorandum of
Understandings (MoU) with corporate houses from around the world. The
democracy was looked upon as a joke in Jharkhand particularly since there
has been mass protests here that has made land acquisitions for the any of
the projects impossible. The legislators were proving more loyal to the
corporate houses from around the world rather than to the very people who
voted them to power.
The immediate reason cited for Madhu Koda revolt is neglect of highway
development between Chaibasa and Noamundi in South Jharkhand from where the
new Chief Minister comes from. The 80 km long high way has been used to
transport super heavy mining trucks that travel in groups of 150 trucks and
when they apply breaks roads are damaged. So this road is closed for public
transport for over 3 months.
Jharkand history is doted with bloodshed in the middle of class struggle. It
is a volcano of political movements including Indias first revolt against
East India Company- imperial intruders in 1855 by Santhal tribals popularly
known as 'Santhan Hul'. Ever since there are as many 17 instances of
Political killings and police firings taking the lives of nearly one lakh
people. It is a common site throughout Jharkhand to be witness to the
memorial stones that keeps this memory alive with year wise chronology of
martyrs.
There has been increasing sense of resistance in present day Jharkhand and
heightened tensions that threatens to break into bloodshed any moment. The
masses of Jharkhand are particularly up in arms against take over of their
lands, for mining, sponge iron plants, pig iron plants. While corporate from
around the world are eager to set up their shops over here reap huge profits
at the cost of displacing thousands of people and polluting its pristine
rivers. Agriculture too is threatened due to corporate onslaught.
The UGDP comes to power in this setting in Jharkhand. Number of questions
are raised as to why exactly Goa party is in Jharkhand. No exact answer can
be deciphered, yet it has got to do with mass appeal of UGDP party symbol of
two leaves. In Goa two leaves has a history of resistance against merger of
Goa with Maharastra in historic opinion poll in late 1960s. The two leaves
then were symbol of United Goans (UG). The same symbol was used as party
symbol when UGDP was founded in mid 1990s in Goa. In Jharkhand two leaves is
a symbol that is having mass appeal with Adivasis and Joba Manjhi's late
husband had won the election as independent with two leaves as his winning
symbol. But it is yet unknown as to from where the brainwave struck to
Jharkhand leaders to connect with Goa UGDP and take Goa as their
headquarters.
Coming of UGDP however had its own corporate interests attached. UGDP
financers in Goa the Dempo mining corporation put its stake in the deal that
it wants to pursue its corporate interest in Jharkhand in mineral rich belt
of West Singhbhum. Joba Manjhi contested and won the elections in Manoharpur
constituency in West Singhbhum district. While her colleague Bandhi Tirkey
won from Mandar Constituency in a tough fight defeating congress candidate.
The two seats gave UGDP kingmakers role in contemporary Jharkhand politics.
And Dempos are all out to be king maker of UGDP's mining policies.
Just two days ago on September 22 2006 Adivasis of her constituency came out
in a group of around 4000 and demonstrated before the Block administration
and handed over the memorandum of protest to Block development Officer (BDO)
putting major poke in Dempos wheels seeking to start mega mining projects
here. Another instance of bloodshed cannot be ruled out against the
corporate that has been kingmaker of Goa's Politics right from the decade of
1940's Portuguese colonial rule.
In fact T. B. Cunha maintained that they were major supporters of
perpetuation of colonialism in Goa even after Indian Indian Independence in
1947. They along with other mining companies then agreed to Indian military
intervention in Goa in December 1961 with understanding with then Prime
Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru that mining sector in Goa will not be
nationalized like rest of India. And ever since Portuguese were forced to
leave Dempos and other mining magnets have been kingmakers in Goa Politics.
So it is not surprising that Dempos turn into King maker of UGDP politics in
Jharkahnd. Of course at the grass roots levels it has already prepared
itself by forming cadre of Dalals and liberal distribution of cash.
Everybody knows Dempos can afford to do this. But it will not succeed till
the Jharkhand goes the way of Seira Leon in Africa and civil war grips this
India's most minerals rich State of India. Present trends points towards
this in every sense.
Sebastian Rodrigues with inputs from BIRSA-MMC team in Ranchi and Manoharpur
Dempo mining affected villagers, Jharklhand.
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