The Hindu : Front Page : Shiv Sena’s anti-SEZ protest turns violent

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Friday, Aug 17, 2007
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Shiv Sena’s anti-SEZ protest turns violent

Special Correspondent

Sena leaders Manohar Joshi, Anant Tare and Prabhakar More arrested

— Photo: PTI

Teargassed: Police in action after the Shiv Sena-led protest against the Reliance Group’s SEZ turned violent in Belapur in Navi Mumbai on Thursday.

MUMBAI: Shiv Sainiks went on the rampage in Navi Mumbai on Thursday to protest against the Reliance Group’s Special Economic Zone (SEZ) coming up in Raigad district. The police had to lathi-charge and burst teargas shells to bring the situation under control.

Several vehicles on the Mumbai-Pune highway and at Konkan Bhavan in Navi Mumbai were damaged. The highway was jammed for over two hours and traffic diversions also did not work.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (zone 1) R.D. Shinde told The Hindu that about 10,000 people, many of them farmers, from Pen, Panvel and Uran talukas in Raigad district led by the Sena planned a “jail bharo” around noon at Konkan Bhavan to protest against the Mahamumbai SEZ. On the way, they stoned buses and cars and tried to enter Konkan Bhavan and the Revenue Commissioner’s Office. Forty-three Shiv Sainiks were arrested, the police said.

Three or four policemen sustained head injuries and one State Reserve Police (SRP) jawan was in the intensive care unit. The situation was brought under control by late afternoon.

Shiv Sena leader Manohar Joshi, legislator Anant Tare, and the former Minister Prabhakar More, who visited the area after the incident were arrested for defying prohibitory orders. Addressing a gathering, Mr. Joshi blamed anti-social elements for the violence. He said the notices issued under Section 6 of the Land Acquisition Act must be withdrawn.

Speaking to The Hindu, Babban Patil, one of the 15 Sena leaders arrested, said the party had organised farmers from the affected villages and there were a number of women who took part in the protest. “Why should we give up f ertile land for Reliance? We have been growing rice there for generations.”

When the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) developed Navi Mumbai, it bought land for Rs. 22,000 an acre nearly 30 years ago. Today, the land is worth much more. Why should the Government act as a broker between Reliance and the farmers, asked Mr. Patil. Forty-five villages in three talukas of Raigad district will be affected by the SEZ, spread over 10,000 hectares.

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