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Journalism of Courage
In a violent turn to a dispute over jobs, at least 19 people were hacked to death and burnt this morning in a North Bengal tea estate. The incident at Dalgaon garden in Jalpaiguri, which has stunned the state administration, is said to be the result of workers’ resentment over recruitment of ‘outsiders’ for clerical jobs.
Preliminary reports said that adivasi workers, who had gone to a local CITU leader’s house to protest his role in the recruitment of clerks, were fired at. This infuriated the workers who retaliated, hacking people inside the house. They later set the house on fire, charring the bodies beyond recognition. A gas cylinder and three parked motorcycles, with petrol tanks full, fuelled the fire.
Tarakeshwar Lohar, the target of the workers’ ire, is the labour sardar of the tea garden. He wanted to appoint as clerks three men who did not belong to the Dalgaon garden. This upset the workers since they felt there were many among them who were equally qualified for the job.
Lohar and his family managed to survive the morning attack. He was later held by the police and questioned to throw more light on what really transpired. Police had rounded up over 100 people who had participated in the attack.
Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya declined comment, saying he was yet to receive a detailed report from the local administration. ‘‘Nineteen people have been killed. I just have a preliminary, sketchy report,’’ Bhattacharjee said.
Rabin Rai, CPI(M) zonal secretary in Birpara and CITU leader in the area’s tea gardens, admitted there were complaints against Lohar and that the workers resented his role in the recruitment process.
In Kolkata, a spokesman for the Tea Association of India (TAI) — Dalgaon is a member garden — said this was a case where trouble was not because of any clash between the management and the union. ‘‘It was union rivalry with one faction trying to oust the other.’’ The garden, with some 1,400 workers, has no recent record of any labour trouble.
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UP: Seven killed in Dalit vs Dalit clash
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AMIT SHARMA
Three children — a 15-month-old infant included — were among the dead at Dostumpur village. Six persons, who sustained severe burns, were in a critical condition in a local hospital. Eleven persons, including the village pradhan, have been arrested. It all began with a fight on Wednesday afternoon over two goats straying into the fields of the main accused. There was an altercation and the owner of the goats, a Kanjar, was beaten. The mob put the bolts on the door and set the house on fire. Rameshwar, who lost his three-year-old daughter in the attack, was inconsolable: ‘‘There was nothing we could do. They had been burnt beyond recognition. What was the fault of the three children?’’ The police — the Fatehpur Chaurasi police station is barely a kilometre from the scene — could be informed only early Thursday morning. Eleven from the mob, named in the FIR, have been arrested. ‘‘We have deployed enough police personnel in the village to protect the other families,’’ police circle officer Ashutosh Pandey told The Indian Express. Story continues below this ad An eerie silence has descended on Dostumpur village after the incident. Many have fled, fearing reprisal. Familes which bore the brunt on Wednesday night say it’s time to leave the village. |
