The Hindu : National : Malcha villagers’ strange claim

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jun 20, 2007
ePaper

National

National

Malcha villagers’ strange claim

New Delhi: Amid hectic political activities in the run-up to the presidential elections, the claim to the nation’s highest office has now come from unexpected quarters.

People of Malcha village, who have now settled in neighbouring Haryana, claim to be the original owners of the land on which the Rashtrapati Bhavan stands and say they deserve the top post.

Malcha village abuts the diplomatic enclave in the capital and is not far from the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

“Almost all of Lutyen’s Delhi, including the Rashtrapati Bhavan, stands on the land which originally belonged to us. After 1910, the English people chased us away and we were forced to settle in Sonipat district in Haryana with no means of living,” says Satish Kumar, the village sarpanch.

“After about a century of struggle, what we are left with is a pack of litigation in the Tis Hazari courts for land compensations. It’s time the Government restored our honour by giving us an opportunity for the top post,” he adds.

Asked whether it could be a reason to claim the President’s post, Mr. Kumar says, “We know we have no political backing but our claim is rather an attempt to draw attention to our plight.”

The villagers claimed that the borders of the erstwhile Malcha village and their agricultural lands stretched right from the Paharganj till the present diplomatic area in Chanakyapuri. “The India Gate, Rashtrapati Bhavan and all other official buildings in the New Delhi area are built on our land. We were left landless by the British regime and to our surprise we failed to get justice even after Independence,” says Narayan Singh, a village elder. — PTI

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National

News Update

Stories in this Section