A fact finding team of CPI (ML) visited Danapur in Patna district on 9 February 2018 regarding the case against Giriraj Singh, a minister in the central government for capturing the land belonging to Shri Ramnarayan Ram. The team included AIARLA’s National President and former MP, Com. Rameshwar Prasad, state secretary of AIARLA, Com. Gopal Ravidas and Com. B.K. Sharma. The team met the Ramnarayan Ram’s grandson Kartik Kumar. They found out that before independence Late Komal Ram had gifted 2.66 acre of land to his granddaughter whose son is Ramnarayan Ram. The three other brothers of Ramnarayan Ram sold their part of land. Since Ramnarayan, whose share accounted for 77 decimal of the land, was a government servant and the land was submerged area, for years he did not pay any attention to it. Recently he came to know that with the connivance of the CO, Union Minister Giriraj Singh along with 33 others have grabbed his land, and it was then that he filed case in the police station. On a part of the land are Blue Whale School and an apartment. The remaining was a fallow land.
This incident has proved Giriraj Singh is a thoroughly corrupt man and he has no moral right to hold on to a public position. It is clear that BJP only pretends to fight corruption. While it uses CBI and other institutions to silence its opposition, when it comes to its own rank and file, it provides protection to the corrupt ministers. The fact finding team also found that the local police station had refused to take cognizance of the case and Ramnarayan Ram had approached the second sessions judge SC/ST court, Patna and filed a case. Shri Ramnarayan Ram had worked in government service as a food inspector for several years. CPI (ML) leaders said that if the Dalits holding government posts are being harassed like this, one can only guess what would be the state of poor Dalits under this BJP-JD(U) dispensation.
Demanding immediate dismissal of Giriraj Singh, CPI(ML) organized a protest day across Bihar on 10 February 2018. In Bhagalpur, a protest demonstration was organized in Bhikanpur Gumti no.12. the protestors, besides demanding dismissal of Giriraj Singh, raised slogan against the central government and burnt the effigy of PM Modi. On 13 February, protest demonstration was organized in Nawada. The protestors also demanded protection for the family of Ramnarayan Ram. Addressing the protest, Com. Bhola Ram, district committee member of CPI(ML) said that the incident exposes BJP’s anti-Dalit face along with its anti-corruption pretensions. He said that there was no place of dignity for Dalits in the Hindu Rashtra of BJP’s dreams. A juloos was taken out in Arwal on this issue. Protest was also held in Begusarai, where a march began from the party office, and through various streets and crossings, it culminated into a protest meeting at Ambedkar Chowk. Addressing the meeting, district secretary Com. Chandradev said that corrupt ministers like Giriraj Singh had no right to stay a minister. He criticized the government for failing to action against a corrupt minister harassing Dalits. Leaders across the state while addressing the protest meetings exposed the true face of the BJP government.
