Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad’s state committee decided to ask the Bengal govt. not to invite John Barla

Siliguri/TT/Jaigaon, Dec. 22: The Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad’s state committee has decided to ask the Bengal government not to invite John Barla and two other leaders to any meeting as they no longer held any post in the party.

The state leadership’s move has come against the backdrop of the trio’s organisational activities in the Dooars and the Terai even after their removal from the posts.

The state tribal leaders will be shooting off letters to various echelons of the government as well as the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes.

While Barla was expelled from the party, Tezkumar Toppo and Sukra Munda have been suspended from their posts for one and two years respectively.

Munda was the chairman of the Parishad-backed Progressive Tea Workers’ Union and Toppo held the post of the state general secretary of the outfit.

Barla was the president of the Terai-Dooars regional committee of the Parishad.

“Ever after action was taken against them last week, they have been working against the Parishad using the flag and banner of the party. We have started writing letters to various wings of the state government, mentioning that these persons have no right to represent the Parishad at official-level talks. A letter will be sent to the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes in Delhi also,” said Birsa Tirkey, the state president of the Parishad.

The state president said the letters would be addressed to the chief secretary, home secretary and departments of labour, backward classes’ welfare and land and land reforms.

“The district magistrates and police superintendents of Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling would also be informed that Barla, Toppo and Munda could no longer represent the Parishad.” He said the posts held by the three leaders would be filled soon and their names would be sent to the government.

The rebel leaders, however, sounded unperturbed when told about the state committee’s decision.

“We do not accept the state committee’s decision and has already severed all ties with it. We are running the regional unit under the leadership of Barla and have served show-cause notices on three leaders in Kalchini-Jaigaon for hobnobbing with Birsa Tirkey,” said Raju Bara, a state committee member who represents the rebels.

Munda said Tirkey had no authority to remove him as the chairman of the tea workers’ union and he would continue to organise programmes under the trade union banner.