Zothanga, 77, a Reang migrant from Mizoram resettled in North Tripura district’s Ashapara, ended his five-day-long hunger strike on Monday after the Tripura Government assured him that it had requested the Centre to increase the ration quota to cover the entire population of Bru migrants in the state.
Zothanga started the hunger strike with three demands — immediate disbursal of rations for all resettled Bru families under the Antyodaya Annapurna Yojana (AAY), proper registration and documentation of residential plots, allocation of five hectares of agricultural land per family as per the agreement between Government of India, the state governments of Tripura and Mizoram, and Bru migrants in 2020.
The hunger strike was called off after he received an assurance from Kanchanpur Subdivisional Magistrate Deepak Kumar in a letter that he wrote to the Ashapara resettlement colony in-charge, Bruno Msha.
“As per information received from revenue and food and civil supplies department, the Government of Tripura has officially requested Govt of India to increase the quota for AAY so that the entire Bru population can get ration under the AAY. As soon as that request is approved, the facility will be extended to the entire Bru population,” the SDM wrote on July 20.
Stating that the ration relief quota was “limited as of now”, the SDM urged the Bru leaders to end the agitation since Zothanga was in a vulnerable shape.
“As a community, we have to help each other and the Government is also working to expand the AAY quota for the whole Bru population,” he said while stating that the administration was also discussing at the highest level the demands for plot registration in the name of the head of beneficiary families and allotment of land for agriculture.
As a part of a Rs 600-crore resettlement package, the Bru migrants will get free rations and Rs 5,000 monthly per family for two years. The families will also get a Rs 1.5 lakh one-time financial support and Rs 4 lakh for constructing permanent houses.
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Meanwhile, six signatories of the 2020 quadripartite Bru agreement – Bruno Msha, Apeto Sawibunga, Philip Apeto, Vipin Kumar Reang, T Laldingliana and C Thankima wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday, apprising him of the situation, expressing solidarity with Zothanga’s protest and requesting the central government to consider the demands of the hunger strike.
However, the issue took a new turn after the local administration of Kanchanpur registered an FIR against eight residents of the Ashapara resettlement colony, accusing them of instigating Zothanga to start the hunger strike.
Zothanga’s ‘supporters’ booked for attempt to murder
SDM Deepak Kumar wrote to the Kanchanpur subdivisional police officer on Monday, “Mr Zothanga, resident of Ashapara, has been on hunger strike for past 6 days, who is being instigated by other residents including Gobinda Reang (secretary Ashapara camp), Dobwung Reang D/o Zothanga, Joherung Reang, Malsawma Reang, Biaki Reang, Rinchhana s/o Zothanga , Daniala Apeto s/o Zothanga and Achaushsa Bru S/o Lalhmingthanga to fulfil their demands.”
His letter also said that “as per medical check-up”, Zothanga was not in a fair state of mind for giving proper instruction and receiving too and, thus, making decisions and providing consent, as a result of which, on his behalf other residents stationed nearby him were allegedly passing several instructions which is making him bound to stay there without any food and proper medical treatment.
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“This type of action may lead to the undesired consequences including death of Mr Zothanga, who is already 77 years of age,” the SDM wrote and got the FIR registered on charges of attempt to murder, depriving a senior citizen of proper medical care, and binding down a senior citizen to a fixed place without food.
