Tribals to file PIL on ‘mass exploitation’ : Over 4,500 youths in the city to sensitise public about the rise in rapes and high number of unwed mothers in the tribal belt of Jhari-Jamni tehsil of Yavatmal.

Pune Mirror: Pune: Saturday, March 15, 2014.

Irked by repeated apathy of the government and a lack of will to address the rise in rapes and high number of unwed mothers in the tribal belt of Jhari-Jamni tehsil of Yavatmal, over 4,500 tribal youths in the city have threatened to file a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) against the government.

They have also taken it upon themselves to sensitise the public about the problems by protesting on the streets, and boycotting April-May’s general election.

The tribal youth claim that in the name of the Election Commission’s code of conduct, neither has police taken any action against the suspects who managed to flee most of them government officers, contractors and businessmen from Chhatisgarh, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh nor has the government provided any aid to the victims.

On March 4, during a public hearing of the victims in presence of administrative and police officials, member of National Commission for Women (NCW) Nirmala Sawant said, “The Kolam tribe has hundreds of unwed mothers. Kolam girls are exploited sexually but the heads of their community seek meagre compensation from the culprits and give social sanction to the crime.”

She added that the administration and police have taken no step to deal with the problem. Despite her order to police officials to take suo-motu action if such case comes to their knowledge, nothing has been done so far.

Speaking to Mirror, Kailas Vasave, a student of Indian Law Society’s Law College and co-ordinator of Government Adivasi Hostel, said, “Representatives of 47 tribal communities in the city have taken the moral responsibility to sensitise the people over this mass sexual exploitation. Like Nirbhaya, the tribal girls are also citizens of this country, but there is a reluctance on the part of the government and the police authorities to help them.”

Vishnu Shelke, president of the Aadim Young Gliders, a tribal group in the city, said, “We have already sent letters to the President of India, Prime Minister’s Office, Human Rights Commission and to Chief Justice of India. Police is refusing to act, and the reason they cited for inaction is lack of manpower due to election duty. We are geting some information under RTI, and thereafter we will file a PIL.”

Expressing shock over atrocities perpetrated against tribal women has gone unreported and kept under wraps, another student Veena Valavi said, “When I heard about the incident, I thought that it will be dealt with strictly by the authorities, but when I contacted the natives, I came to know that nothing has been done. The culprits took advantage of the shy nature of tribal girls.”

Susieben Shah, chairperson of Maharashtra State Commission for Women, said, “I need to find out more about the incident as I am not aware of it. I will take all the details regarding the police action and aid provided by the authority.”