Empty chairs greet Modi at Bhopal tribals’ rally; Congress accuses BJP leaders of grabbing their land

Even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday addressed a tribals’ rally in Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh, to mark Birsa Munda’s birth anniversary, ostensibly to woo the community which constitutes about 22 percent of the state’s population, the state unit of the Congress accused BJP leaders of harassing tribals and snatching their land.

A day before Modi’s rally, a tribal worker was killed by ‘dabangs’ (strongmen) related to the BJP in Shivpuri, the Congress alleged.

Similarly, a family of the Gond tribe in Sidhi district has accused BJP MLA Kedarnath Shukla of capturing their land forcibly. In a complaint sent to the district SP’s office, the family has accused Shukla of “changing the ownership of the land” and demanded action against the him. Signed by six members of the family, the complaints have sought action against Shukla’s brother also.

Earlier in the day, MP Congress spokesman KK Mishra attacked Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan for showing ‘fake love for tribals’.

In another case, tribals accused BJP leader V.D. Sharma of grabbing their valuable land in Panna district.

The Congress alleged that one Khanna Maharaj, a representative of Sharma, and his family had grabbed lands of some tribals. They had demolished the houses of tribals and constructed houses over their land, alleged the principal opposition party in MP.

The MP Congress also termed Modi’s rally as a flop. Sharing a video of vacant chairs, the Congress took a jibe at CM Shivraj Singh. “Modi returned after addressing vacant chairs. What have you done Shivraj Ji? Despite spending Rs 16 crore you cannot gather the crowd,” it tweeted.

Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Digvijaya Singh attacked the BJP government for misusing State machinery for the rally. “Government officers have been on duty. Is it BJP’s rally or government’s rally?” he tweeted.

The National Herald had reported on Saturday how the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh has waived off toll tax on buses ferrying tribals to the rally ground. The Collector, Department of Tribal Development (DoTD) had also ‘facilitated’ the night stay of the participants coming from various districts to Bhopal.

On Monday, the MP Congress had also organized a parallel tribal convention in Jabalpur in which former CMs Kamal Nath and Digvijaya Singh along with other senior party leaders participated.