A dispute over ownership of forest land in Belehari, Ri-Bhoi, has pitted the entire village against one woman, with the village council taking a decision to evict the individual from the village and giving her just five days to leave.
There have been several cases in the past where powerful village officials have used and misused poorly defined powers to ostracise or evict residents but on this occasion the villagers feel that they have just cause.
The dispute goes back to 2011 when the woman, identified as Morias Rani, reportedly registered communally-owned forest as her private property. The Dorbar Shnong opposed this, arguing that the forest belonged to the community and could not be claimed by a single person. Despite this, Rani persisted in her claims and legal challenges against the village.
Five residents of the village were originally involved in trying to register the forest as private land. However, after discussions, four gave up the process but Rani persisted. The villagers claim that she has refused to comply with the Dorbar’s resolutions and escalated the matter by lodging complaints with the government.
On Saturday the Belehari village council convened a meeting but Rani chose not to attend, in spite of an invitation to do so, either in person or through her representatives. The purpose of the meeting was ostensibly to negotiate and resolve the long-standing dispute. However, Rani’s absence led the villagers to adopt a tough stance against her continued residency in the village.
The eviction notice is based on the grounds that her behaviour and actions have disrupted the peace and harmony of the village and that she has acted unlawfully by claiming ownership of the village forest, which she allegedly registered under her name at the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Ri-Bhoi.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, village headman Peter Stone Syngkli and secretary Khrawpyrkhat Rani stated that the community, including youths, women and elders, have resolved to no longer allow Rani to live in Belehari. They cited “disruptive actions”, including registering the communal forest under her name and creating problems for villagers by falsely claiming ownership of the land. They also accused her of obstructing the rights of villagers to engage in farming and forestry activities, which she challenged by filing complaints and claiming ownership of the forest. They also alleged that Rani had complained to authorities in Assam whenever there was development work carried out in the border village just to stir up trouble between Assam and Meghalaya.
