SC asks states to apprise it about action taken on evicting tribals

The Supreme Court has asked 21 states to apprise it about the action taken by them over the eviction of tribals and forest dwellers whose claim for the forest land have been rejected.

The apex court, in its February 13 order, asked the chief secretaries of the states concerned to file affidavits stating whether those against whom the rejection orders were passed, have been evicted or not and if not, the reasons for the same.

A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra was dealing with a batch of petitions on the issue that were filed in the apex court over a period since 2006.

The states, which have come under the scanner of the top court, are -- Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Manipur.

Dealing with the issue related to Andhra Pradesh, the bench said, "Once the orders of eviction have been passed, the eviction ought to have taken place."
In the case of Assam, the bench said, "In case the eviction orders have attained finality, we direct the concerned authority including the Chief Secretary to ensure that the eviction is made on or before the next date of hearing."