Distressed farmer rolls on floor in central India’s collectorate office, protests land mafia occupation
by Aditi VermaA video from central India’s Madhya Pradesh, captures a desperate farmer rolling on the floor of the Collectorate office, pleading for action against the illegal occupation of his land by a local mafia.
The incident took place in the Collectorate office in Mandsaur district and the video went viral on July 17.
Visuals showed a distressed farmer, Shankarlal, rolling on the floor of the Collectorate office with folded hands, begging for justice. Shankarlal, dressed in a worn-out dhoti, repeatedly asked, “What should we do now?” as officers and visitors looked on. The farmer alleges that despite filing multiple complaints about the illegal occupation of his land by a local mafia, no action has been taken.
“I am troubled by the land mafia. The Tehsildar makes a mistake, and the farmer suffers. They make mistake, and I suffer the consequences. I am unhappy with the government and the administration. The officers here are corrupt. We are so troubled… farmers are being cheated,” Shankarlal expressed his frustration.
Responding to the incident, District Magistrate Dilip Yadav stated, “All the cases that come in the public hearing are resolved immediately.” He added that many people attended the hearing on Tuesday, and their issues were addressed as much as possible, including reviewing cases from previous public hearings.
The local administration clarified that Shankarlal and his family maintain possession of the disputed land. According to the investigation report by the Tehsildar, based on documents provided by the local administration, the land in question, located in Sukhad village, area number 604 (2.5 hectares) and survey number 625 (1.01 hectares), is held jointly by Shankarlal’s family. Half of this land was sold to Ashwin, son of Narayan Rao, in a sale deed dated December 31, 2010. The transfer was approved by the then Tehsildar, Sitamau. However, the sold land remains in the possession of Shankarlal’s relatives, who are unwilling to hand it over to Ashwin.