Jharkhand's ruling coalition MLA, oppn BJP seek rectification of 'flaws' in PESA rules

Ranchi, Jan 8 (PTI) A Congress legislator, who is part of the ruling coalition in Jharkhand, and the opposition BJP on Thursday demanded that the state government rectify the "flaws" in PESA rules, which were implemented recently.

Both Congress MLA Rameshwar Oraon and BJP state president Babulal Marandi claimed that there is no mention of the customary laws, social and religious practices of the tribals in the rules of the Panchayat Extension of Scheduled Area (PESA) Act, 1996.

The Act, recognising the rights of tribal communities in Scheduled Areas, was enacted in 1996. The state government notified the PESA rules on January 2.

Oraon said he would write to Chief Minister Hemant Soren and party leader Rahul Gandhi, highlighting “flaws” in PESA rules that, he claimed, will “put the future of tribals in the dark”, if not corrected at the earliest.

“Unfortunately, there is no mention of the customary laws, social and religious practices in the rules, which form the core of the Act. The flaw will cause a huge loss to the tribal communities. It is not in the interest of tribal people,” the Congress’ Lohardaga MLA told PTI.

The Congress is a partner in the JMM-led alliance government in Jharkhand.

Oraon said he raised the issue before the Jharkhand Congress in-charge K Raju during a meeting on Wednesday.

“I told him that if the flaw was not corrected, it may also impact the party, like the case in Chhattisgarh. The previous Congress government in Chhattisgarh made similar mistakes, and the party had to face defeat,” he said.

“I have also decided to write a letter to Chief Minister Hemant Soren and our party leader Rahul Gandhi in this regard, urging them to rectify the flaws,” Oraon added.

Raising the same demand, Jharkhand BJP chief Babulal Marandi alleged that the Hemant Soren government was misleading people under the pretext of the PESA law.

Marandi said that a provision in the Act clearly says "any state legislation that may be made in relation to Panchayats shall be in conformity with the customary law, social and religious practices, and traditional management practices of community resources".

The PESA Act protects the tribal faith and practices, he told reporters.

Marandi, a former chief minister, said, "The government has removed the part of customary law, social and religious practices in the PESA rules. We demand that the government correct the flaw immediately and include the provision as it is mentioned in the Act." He threatened to launch a huge protest if the government did not make the correction. PTI SAN RBT SAN NN