Amid biting cold conditions, Bihar witnessed widespread protests against bulldozer action being carried out on the homes of Dalit and poor families. On the call of the All India Khet and Rural Workers’ Sabha (KHEGRAMS) and other agricultural labour organisations, militant demonstrations were held on January 5 and 6 across more than 200 administrative blocks in the state. Protesters demanded an immediate halt to the bulldozer drive, a proper survey of long-established Dalit settlements, and the issuance of land titles (pattas).
Thousands of activists from KHEGRAMS and the MGNREGA Workers’ Union, affiliated with the CPI(ML), participated in the protests. Leading the movement in Bikram block of Patna district, KHEGRAMS national general secretary Dhirendra Jha said that after Independence, Bihar was the first state to enact the PPH Act in 1948, granting residential land rights to sharecroppers and labourers. Despite this, nearly 30 percent of the state’s population remains landless in terms of housing, which he described as clear evidence of the failure to honestly implement pro-poor laws.
Jha demanded that all areas where people have been living for years be properly surveyed and that land titles be issued to residents. He also called for the establishment of workers’ colonies in panchayats and urban wards for families displaced in the name of development projects. Announcing future plans, he said a militant gherao of the Bihar Assembly would be organised during the upcoming budget session by Dalit and poor villagers. Demands for the full implementation of MGNREGA and the repeal of the four labour codes were also raised during the protests.
In Daraundha block of Siwan district, the movement was led by KHEGRAMS national president and former MLA Satyadev Ram, who accused the government of displacing the poor to provide land to large corporate houses such as Adani and Ambani. He said the Chief Minister had already been confronted on the issue in the Assembly and that decisive street-level protests would now follow. He added that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar would not be able to escape responsibility by handing over land reforms to the BJP.
KHEGRAMS state secretary Shatrughan Sahni said that strong protests were held in most blocks across the state. He warned that “bulldozer rule” would not be allowed on the question of housing for Dalit and poor families, and that a decisive movement would be launched if the demolitions were not stopped. He also alleged that the bulldozer campaign had exposed the reality of buying women’s votes with money, noting the large participation of women in the protests.
The movement in Paliganj and Dulhin Bazar was led by young MLA Sandeep Saurabh, who said that the failure to regularise Dalit settlements that have existed for decades raises serious questions about both justice and development. He demanded the regularisation of all Dalit settlements, including Mushahar and Bhuiyan habitations.
Protests across the state were led by leaders including Gopal Ravidas, Birendra Gupta, Upendra Paswan, Pradeep Kumar and others in various districts. KHEGRAMS made it clear that if the government does not halt the bulldozer action and ensure housing rights for Dalit and poor families, the agitation will be intensified further.
