27 yrs on, Shamli teacher continues to fight against land mafias who ‘grabbed’ his land

An ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi’s doctrine of non-violence and Vinoba Bhave, Singh has been staging a sit-in protest at Shiv Chowk in Muzaffarnagar.

MEERUT In possibly one of the longest individual fights against land mafias, a 61-year-old teacher, Vijay Singh, has been staging sit-in protests for 27 years now. According to Singh, land mafias grabbed 4,000 bighas of his agricultural land in his native Chausana village of Shamli district when he was 33 years old. Since then, Singh has staged several protests to win back his land but all in vain.

A 61-year-old teacher, Vijay Singh, has been staging sit-in protests for 27 years now. (HT Photo)

Speaking to HT over the phone, Singh said, “In the last 27 years, several inquiries have been launched to investigate my complaints, However, my land -- presently worth ₹700 crore -- continues to remain under the control of land mafias, who are powerful political leaders.” His village was part of the Muzaffarnagar district until Shamli was carved out in 2011.

An ardent follower of Mahatma Gandhi’s doctrine of non-violence and Vinoba Bhave, Singh has been staging a sit-in protest at Shiv Chowk in Muzaffarnagar since September 19, 2019. “I take energy and inspiration from them to continue my battle against injustice in society... I have dedicated my life to seeking justice and to win back the grabbed land,” said Singh.

On Monday, Bharatiya Kisan Union president Naresh Tikait met Vijay Singh and felicitated him for his battle against land mafias. Praising him, Tikait said, “He has been fighting for the society and his dedication is an inspiration for younger generations.” Tikait added that government should resolve the issue after conducting an inquiry.

“My hopes rekindled after witnessing chief minister Yogi Adityanath initiating action against land mafias. In 2019, I even gave him a memorandum during a meeting. Subsequently, the SDM submitted his report to government and senior officials and recommended action against land mafias. However, nothing has changed on the ground so far,” lamented Singh.

Later, Singh also handed over the memorandum to the Prime Minister, home minister, and defence minister and yet no concrete action was taken. Vijay Singh also claims that he gave a complaint to the then CM Mulayam Singh Yadav but no action was taken to acquire the land. HL Birdi, the then divisional commissioner of Meerut, ordered a probe into the matter in 1995 and directed concerned officials to remove the illegal control of the mafia on the land but the situation remained unchanged.

When asked about the issue, Dr Lokesh M, divisional commissioner, Saharanpur, said, “I visited Muzaffarnagar several times but nobody brought the issue to my knowledge. I will ask the district magistrate of Shamli about the issue and comment thereafter.”