Down To Earth: Madhya Pradesh: Wednesday, 29 January 2025.
Decision taken by state government violative of FRA, says advocacy group which filed RTI
A Right To Information (RTI)
query has revealed that the Madhya Pradesh government will withdraw criminal
forest offences in less than half of the 8,000 cases that it promised.
The government had announced a withdrawal of criminal forest cases against people from Scheduled Tribes within a span of three months in May last year.
However, an RTI query filed in November last year by the Criminal Justice and Police Accountability Project (CPA), a litigation, research and capacity-building intervention organisation that works to address criminalisation of marginalised communities, found otherwise.
It found that limited cases pending in the various magisterial courts of Madhya Pradesh, meeting specific parameters underlined by the forest department, were considered for withdrawal.
These cases were mainly related to encroachments, illegal tree cutting (excluding forest offences), illegal mining and other cases such as collection of timber or tendu leaves, as per a statement issued by the CPA.
“The data provided that a total of 4,496 number of cases are to be considered for withdrawal. The breakdown of 4,496 cases are illegal tree cutting (776); encroachment (2,268); illegal mining (96); cases related to wild animals (1,040); and others (316),” the statement said.
Harsh Kinger, lawyer and advocacy consultant at CPA, said, “No information regarding the same has been made public since the announcement. The response through the RTI shows the proposed actions are arbitrary, symbolic and violate of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA).”
Kinger explained that the decision to withdraw cases is not based on reasoning. “FRA recognises individual as well as community rights of the Forest dwelling schedule tribes (FDSTs) and Other traditional forest dwellers (OTFDs) under Section 3; therefore all the cases which are in violation of Section 3 should be withdrawn. The reasoning behind the parameters set by the forest department is not known.”
He added that it is evident that the decision taken by the state government is violative of the FRA.
Kinger said the reasons provided by the RTI reply do not provide clarity on why the cases of offences withdrawal were reduced from 8,000 to 4,496.
The action is not based on review of the forest offences against the vulnerable adivasis, Forest Dependent Schedule Tribes (FDSTs) and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (OTFDs) who are entitled legal rights under the FRA for use of forest land including protected areas for accessing minor forest produce, grazing, water bodies, fishing and others.
Withdrawal of such cases which have been wrongly filed cannot be called ‘withdrawn’, he said.
The statement issued to the media stated, “The cases proposed to be withdrawn and listed in the RTI response are only against people from Scheduled Tribes. But the FRA under Section 4(1) recognises and also secures individual or community rights and tenure or both, as the forest rights of both FDSTs and OTFDs including Dalit, OBCs having traditional access and use over forests. Keeping OTFDs out of the ambit of decriminalisation is detrimental, as it leaves out a major population of forest dwellers.”
The CPA has termed the action as violative of FRA. As per the website of the MP forest department, the total number of cases filed between January 2015 and 2025 for the corresponding time add up to 518,091. But the government has only proposed to withdraw 4,496 cases pending in department tax queries and against OTFDs for withdrawal excluding majority of the cases, the statement alleged.
The CPA in its statement said FRA recognises fishing as a community right. But the RTI revealed that 66 cases against 91 people have been slapped for fishing in the past 10 years under the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA), 1972.
“The arrest records incorrectly note that the ‘hunting’ of fish for consumption was marked under Schedule V, which is not a statutory classification for the species. Regardless, Schedule V animals are also marked as vermin and it is not an offence to hunt such species,” the statement said.
Additionally, in MP, a total of 1,096 cases have been filed against the forest dwellers between 2015 and 2024 for hunting wild boar.
Wild boar, which raid crops of farmers and lead to human-animal conflict, have become an issue as farmers suffer losses and deploy self-defence measures for protection.
The situation has led to wild boar being accidentally getting killed due to electrocution in electric fences. The forest department has now filed cases citing WPA.
Besides, cases have been filed for collecting minor forest produce like honey, wood, and other forest resources. The CPA has demanded an urgent need to intervene in the process to make it transparent.
Decision taken by state government violative of FRA, says advocacy group which filed RTI
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| Baiga Adivasis in Dindori district of Madhya Pradesh Photo: Vikas Choudhary/CSE |
The government had announced a withdrawal of criminal forest cases against people from Scheduled Tribes within a span of three months in May last year.
However, an RTI query filed in November last year by the Criminal Justice and Police Accountability Project (CPA), a litigation, research and capacity-building intervention organisation that works to address criminalisation of marginalised communities, found otherwise.
It found that limited cases pending in the various magisterial courts of Madhya Pradesh, meeting specific parameters underlined by the forest department, were considered for withdrawal.
These cases were mainly related to encroachments, illegal tree cutting (excluding forest offences), illegal mining and other cases such as collection of timber or tendu leaves, as per a statement issued by the CPA.
“The data provided that a total of 4,496 number of cases are to be considered for withdrawal. The breakdown of 4,496 cases are illegal tree cutting (776); encroachment (2,268); illegal mining (96); cases related to wild animals (1,040); and others (316),” the statement said.
Harsh Kinger, lawyer and advocacy consultant at CPA, said, “No information regarding the same has been made public since the announcement. The response through the RTI shows the proposed actions are arbitrary, symbolic and violate of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA).”
Kinger explained that the decision to withdraw cases is not based on reasoning. “FRA recognises individual as well as community rights of the Forest dwelling schedule tribes (FDSTs) and Other traditional forest dwellers (OTFDs) under Section 3; therefore all the cases which are in violation of Section 3 should be withdrawn. The reasoning behind the parameters set by the forest department is not known.”
He added that it is evident that the decision taken by the state government is violative of the FRA.
Kinger said the reasons provided by the RTI reply do not provide clarity on why the cases of offences withdrawal were reduced from 8,000 to 4,496.
The action is not based on review of the forest offences against the vulnerable adivasis, Forest Dependent Schedule Tribes (FDSTs) and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (OTFDs) who are entitled legal rights under the FRA for use of forest land including protected areas for accessing minor forest produce, grazing, water bodies, fishing and others.
Withdrawal of such cases which have been wrongly filed cannot be called ‘withdrawn’, he said.
The statement issued to the media stated, “The cases proposed to be withdrawn and listed in the RTI response are only against people from Scheduled Tribes. But the FRA under Section 4(1) recognises and also secures individual or community rights and tenure or both, as the forest rights of both FDSTs and OTFDs including Dalit, OBCs having traditional access and use over forests. Keeping OTFDs out of the ambit of decriminalisation is detrimental, as it leaves out a major population of forest dwellers.”
The CPA has termed the action as violative of FRA. As per the website of the MP forest department, the total number of cases filed between January 2015 and 2025 for the corresponding time add up to 518,091. But the government has only proposed to withdraw 4,496 cases pending in department tax queries and against OTFDs for withdrawal excluding majority of the cases, the statement alleged.
The CPA in its statement said FRA recognises fishing as a community right. But the RTI revealed that 66 cases against 91 people have been slapped for fishing in the past 10 years under the Wildlife Protection Act (WPA), 1972.
“The arrest records incorrectly note that the ‘hunting’ of fish for consumption was marked under Schedule V, which is not a statutory classification for the species. Regardless, Schedule V animals are also marked as vermin and it is not an offence to hunt such species,” the statement said.
Additionally, in MP, a total of 1,096 cases have been filed against the forest dwellers between 2015 and 2024 for hunting wild boar.
Wild boar, which raid crops of farmers and lead to human-animal conflict, have become an issue as farmers suffer losses and deploy self-defence measures for protection.
The situation has led to wild boar being accidentally getting killed due to electrocution in electric fences. The forest department has now filed cases citing WPA.
Besides, cases have been filed for collecting minor forest produce like honey, wood, and other forest resources. The CPA has demanded an urgent need to intervene in the process to make it transparent.
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