Jamshedpur MLA Purnima Sahu demands ownership rights for 86 bastis

Mail News Service

Jamshedpur, Mar 23: Jamshedpur East MLA Purnima Sahu has strongly raised the demand for full ownership rights for residents of 86 bastis, urging the government to pass a permanent law granting them security over their homes. Raising the issue under the attention motion in the Assembly on Saturday, she reminded the government that in 2018, it had approved the lease rights for these settlements. However, she emphasized that the residents do not want mere leases but full ownership, as they have been living on this land for decades. She highlighted that the affected people include tribals, Dalits, backward classes and economically weaker sections, who deserve the fundamental right to own the land they have long called home.

MLA Sahu also criticized the ruling party, recalling that Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and Congress had promised ownership rights to these settlement dwellers during the last Assembly elections. She pointed out that MLA Kalpana Murmu Soren had publicly assured residents of this issue in her election meetings. “Was this just a hollow promise made for electoral gains, or will the government fulfill its commitment?” she questioned. She further appealed to the Speaker of the Assembly, urging the House to pass a law unanimously, ensuring the security of more than three lakh poor and hardworking families.

Calling it a humanitarian issue rather than a political one, she urged the Chief Minister to take immediate steps to provide permanent relief by granting full ownership rights to the settlement dwellers. “This struggle should not be prolonged any further. The government must act with sensitivity and urgency to ensure that these families are given the rightful security of homeownership,” she stated.