Why have the evicted Santals not been rehabilitated yet?

It is shocking that even after two years, around 1,200 Santal families evicted from their homes in Gaibandha are still living a life of destitution, uncertainty and fear. An eviction drive led by local influentials resulted in the death of three Santal men with many others injured, some with life-long physical impairment. Some Santals are still missing.

According to yesterday's report in this paper, these people are living in tents in nearby villages. Their survival is a challenge as many of them continue to bear the injuries from the day they were evicted, making it hard for them to find work. The women are still afraid to go out to work as they fear they will be attacked.

So what has been done to rehabilitate them and why do they still feel so insecure? Nothing has really been done to allay their apprehensions. Although a case has been filed on behalf of the Santals, and 25 people have been arrested, this does not include the prime accused. The rehabilitation process, moreover, seems to be an eyewash for the public. As the report has said, so far only two or three of the evicted families have been rehabilitated in other villages.

During the Pakistan period, the government acquired the land from the Santals for a sugarcane farm. It was agreed that the land would be returned to the original owners if it were used for farming any other. However, the agreement was violated and the mill authority leased out the land for farming other crops. According to the local upazila land office, only 92-97 acres of 1,842.3 acres of the land were being used for farming sugarcane in 2014-15 fiscal year. The local Santals had complained about this infringement of the contract but in vain.

The lack of compassion for these helpless people is unacceptable. We expect the administration to ensure that the letter and spirit of the agreement made at the time of the acquisition be respected and that these families are returned to their ancestral land. Furthermore, those who are responsible for the eviction that led to the deaths and injuries of the Santals must be held accountable.