SUMAN K SHRIVASTAVA
Ranchi, Sept 15: Chief Minister Hemant Soren, faced with serious corruption as well as holding office-of-profit charges, might have adopted the 1932 land records for defining a locals in Jharkhand in order to browbeat his political adversaries, but his decision will sure to be tested on the constitutional touchstone.
Some 20 years back, a constitution bench of the Jharkhand High Court led by Chief Justice V K Gupta, had unanimously struck down a similar move made by the then Babulal Marandi government.
Retired Supreme Court judge Justice S.J. Mukhopadhaya, then a member of the constitution bench of the Jharkhand High Court, while concurring with the judgment, adding his own view to the judgment, had said that there is no fixed cut off year…which can be taken as the base year for the purpose of determination of local persons’ of a State.
He, however, said that the State Government can give preference to ‘local persons who are familiar with the local conditions like language, customs etc. in the event of a tie between two or more candidates whose performance at the selection is bound to be equal. “It cannot be said to be discriminatory being not based on ‘residence alone’ and is valid, being just, proper and is immune from challenge,” he added.
Survey settlement
Advocate General Rajiv Ranjan, appearing then for petitioner Prashant Vidyarthy, had referred to some historical perspective of the nature of survey settlement for different districts upon which the records of rights were prepared.
According to him, survey was made under Chhotanagpur Tenancy Act for the Chhotanagpur area/region and under Regulation-III of 1872 for the Santhal Par-ganas. In the Santhal Parganas region of Jharkhand, the records of rights have been prepared on the basis of report prepared by J.F. Gantzer popularly known as Gantzer’s Report. The survey operation commenced in October, 1922 and concluded in February, 1935 excluding the following areas :
(i) “Sauria Paharia hills of the Raj-mahal and Godda Sub division.
(ii) The “Ganges Diara Trackts” of Rajmahal.
(iii) The Municipal Town of Dumka, Sahebganj, Deoghar and
(iv) The Jungle Trackts of Santhal Pargana.
“Thus, if the definition of ‘local persons’ is based on last survey records of rights, the Santhals of Raj Mahal, Godda, Dumka, Sahebganj, Deoghar and Madhupur never be able to secure certificates of ‘local persons’, though they are the original inhabitants of Jharkhand,” Justice Mukhopadhya said.
Vidyarthy had also stated that the years of the last survey settlement is different for different districts, such as; for Dalbhum, it was between 1906 to 1911; for Seraikela between 1925 to 1928; for Hazaribagh between 1908 to 1915; and for Palamau between 1913 to 1920. After the aforesaid surveys, fresh survey settlement is also in operation, in many of the districts, such as Palamau, Ranchi, Santhal Parganas and Hazaribagh. The survey settlement report for Singhbhum district is of the year 1964. Therefore, the last records of rights is that of the year 1964 for the district of Singhbhum.
Justice MUkhopadhya also referred to the last Gazetter of Singhbhum district which said that the areas of Chandil, Patamda and Ishagar Police stations which were in the district of Manbhum (West Bengal) were integrated to the Singhbhum district in the year 1956, as a result of the recommendations of the State Reorganisation Commission.
The ‘Seraikela’ and ‘Kharsawa’ which were part of the State of Orissa were integrated in the district of Singhbhum in the year 1948.
Emigration
The instance of ’emigration’ has a particular feature of the Chhotanagpur region. The emigration of several types took place such as emigration to the Coalfields and to the Tea Gardens. It is hardly any part of India from where the people have not come to Jamshedpur to earn their bread since the inception of the steel Factories of the TATAS in the-year 1907.
The last Gazetteer of Singhbhum, details of rehabilitation of displaced persons in the district of Singhbhum has been given. Since partition of India in 1947, displaced persons both from East and West Pakistan were settled in the region.
The first batch of displaced persons numbering 3000 (three thousand) had arrived only in the district of Singhbhum from West Pakistan in the later part of 1947 and were housed in the liquidated Military Camp at Chakulia Airfield. Later on, they were shifted to Jamshedpur and were rehabilitated.
The second batch numbering 1170 (one thousand one hundred and seventy) arrived in the district of Singhbhum from East Pakistan in May, 1950 and were housed in Jamshedpur, The third batch of East Pakistan refugees arrived in July, 1951 from Bihta Camp, considered of 420 (four hundred and twenty) persons, were settled in the Colony at Chakradharpur (district – Singhbhum).
The fourth batch of displaced persons consisted of 318 (three hundred and eighteen) persons arrived in the district of Sinhbhum in November, 1952 from East Pakistan. However, they were sent to Purnia district.
The fifth batch of refugees from East Pakistan came in March, 1957, who were agriculturists and were rehabilitated at Village Tentuldanga about two miles from Ghatshila (district- Singhbhum).
An area of 20.21 acres was taken from the TISCO in Jamshedpur on Golmurhi Road where refugees were settled. They are divided into three blocks, known as Punjabi Block, Sindhi Block and Bengali block.
In West Pakistan Colony in the district of Singhbhum, 220 houses had been constructed by giving liberal loans.
The person who or whose ancestors have settled in the State for more than 70 (seventy) years, even amongst them, discrimination has been made there being wide gap of preparation and publication of survey records in one or other district. There are districts or towns where even no such survey record was prepared.
Justice Mukhopadhya said that the Jharkhand Government failed to notice the Reorganisation of State, as took from time to time, i.e. since the year, 1948. “It has also failed to take into consideration the emigration as took place since long i.e. for more than fifty years and the refugees who were settled by the State in between the year 1947 and March, 1957,” he added.
He had concluded that the Jharkhand government should redefine the ‘local persons’ and to re-prescribe the guidelines for determination of ‘local persons’ taking into account the relevant history of the State, such as, reorganization as taken from time to time; emigration of persons; as taken place during the last fifty years, settlement of refugees etc.
