In a shocking incident, a farmer in Madhya Pradesh’s Mandsaur went to the District Magistrate’s office on 15th July, begging officials to protect his land from being “captured” by the local mafia. Sharing the video of the incident, the Congress party launched an attack on the BJP government. However, on 17th July, the authorities clarified that the farmer in the video still possesses the land and no land mafia has occupied it.
Madhya Pradesh: In Mandsaur, farmer Shantilal Patidar protested at the collector's office after his grievances went unheard. He arrived in an unconventional manner, rolling on the ground. Patidar sought attention for his plight, emblematic of widespread rural grievances at the… pic.twitter.com/u32CXYpWot
— IANS (@ians_india) July 17, 2024
“This video describes the condition of farmers under Modi government. In Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh, a helpless farmer kept making rounds of government offices, but his plea was not heard anywhere. At some places bribe was demanded and at other places people were sent away without any hearing. Ultimately, fed up, the farmer was forced to take this step. It is a well known fact that BJP and Narendra Modi are anti-farmer, it has been proved again today,” Congress posted.
Shankarlal, dressed in a worn-out dhoti, was spotted rolling on the floor of the Collectorate office with his hands folded, muttering, “What should we do now?” as officials and visitors looked on.
The old farmer claimed that despite numerous complaints, no action had been taken. He said that the alleged “inaction” of the officials prompted him to roll in the Collectorate’s halls to draw attention towards his plight.
“A local land mafia is troubling me. The Tehsildar makes a mistake, and the farmer suffers. They make the mistakes, and I suffer the consequences. I am unhappy with the government and the administration. The officers here are corrupt. We are so troubled… farmers are being cheated,” Shankarlal said.
‘Shankarlal has the possession of the land, nothing for us to do’: clarifies district collector
During a public hearing on Tuesday, Shankarlal filed an application with the district administration. Dismissing the claims of inaction by officials, the Mandsaur administration clarified that farmer Shankarlal continues to hold possession of the said land.
In an official statement, the Collector of Mandsaur Dilip Kumar said, “The applicant Shankar Lal, son of Phoolchand, is himself in possession of 1/2 of his land. The administration received the application sympathetically and heard the matter. Based on the facts, no person/land mafia has occupied the applicant’s land. The applicant Shankar Lal, son of Phoolchand, submitted an application to the district administration during the public hearing. The administration received the application sympathetically and heard the matter. Further action regarding the application was taken at a quick pace. The said application was examined.”
जनसुनवाई के दौरान आवेदक श्री शंकर लाल पिता फूलचंद द्वारा आवेदन दिया गया था। इनकी 1/2 भूमि पर स्वयं का कब्जा है। उक्त संबंध में कोई कार्यवाही लंबित नहीं है- कलेक्टर श्री दिलीप कुमार @JansamparkMP pic.twitter.com/SRl8HDtttp
— Collector Mandsaur (@CMandsaur) July 17, 2024
According to the Tehsildar’s report, which was based on documents provided by the local administration, there are 2.5 hectares of land in Surkheda village, area number 604, and 1.01 hectares in survey number 625. Here, the aggrieved farmer Shankarlal and his family, which includes Anokhilal, Bhagwan Bhai, and Resham Bhai, sons of Phoolchand, as well as Baba Ghasiram, Karu Lal, Ramlal, Prabhu Lal, Mangi Bai, and Parvati Bai, children of Ghati, jointly own this land.
Collector Dilip Kumar further stated that half of this land was sold to Ashwin, the son of Narayan Rao, a Mandsaur resident, using a sale deed dated December 31, 2010. The transfer of the aforementioned land was authorised by the then Tehsildar, Sitamau, in the 2010-11 transfer registry. However, Karu Lal, Ramlal, Prabhu Lal, Mangi Bai, and Parvati Bai continue to hold the sold land and its possession has not been taken over by Ashwin.
“After examination, the facts regarding the application are that the land situated in village Surkheda, survey number 604 and 625, total area 3.52 hectares, was registered in the hands of joint account holders Shankar Lal, Anokhi Lal, Bhagwan Bai, Reshambai, son of Phoolchand, 1/2 and Sampatbai, widow of Ghasiram, Karulal, Ramlal Prabhu Lal, Mangi Bai, Parvati Bai, son of Ghasi, his share was 1/2. Out of which, co-account holders Sampatbai etc. sold their share of land to Ashwin, son of Narayan Deshmukh in 2010. And the said land was not occupied by the buyer Ashwin,” the Collector’s statement continued.
The collector also added that if Shankarlal has any grievance over the sale of the portion of the land by the other owners, he should approach the civil court. No land mafia has occupied the farmer’s land and the applicant Shankarlal still occupies the concerned land, the collector clarified on the matter.
“It is worth mentioning here that the applicant Shankar Lal, son of Phoolchand, is currently in possession of 1/2 land which is the applicant’s share and the land which was sold by co-shared person Sampatbai etc. in 2010 is also in possession of Shankar Lal, son of Phoolchand till date. On the basis of the report sent by the Sub-Divisional Officer (Revenue), Sitamau and the facts, no person/land mafia is occupying the land of the applicant Shankarlal, son of Phoolchand. If any person submits an application regarding illegal occupation of the said land, legal action will be taken by the administration,” the Collector added.
