NAC members, academicians, social activists and street vendors’ representatives protest continuing eviction of hawkers and police action in Mumbai and seek immediate intervention of Union Minister Ajay Maken and Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chauhan

NAC members, academicians, social activists and street vendors’ representatives protest continuing eviction of hawkers and police action in Mumbai and seek immediate intervention of Union Minister Ajay Maken and Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chauhan

The street vendors agitation in protest against ongoing forced eviction of hawkers in Mumbai and growing police atrocities gained momentum with National Advisory Council(NAC) members, academicians, labour rights activists and street vendors representatives on Friday coming in support of the suffering Mumbai hawkers and demanding immediate intervention of the Union Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Ajay Maken and the Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chauhan to ensure immediate stopping of the forced eviction drive and justice to the suffering street vendors and hawkers.

A petition, in this regard, signed by well known academician and labour expert of Tata Institute of Social Sciences Professor Sharit Bhowmik, NAC member Mirai Chatterjee, former NAC member and director of Center for Equity Studies Harsh Mander, SEWA president Renana Jhabvala and NASVI president and coordinator Manali Shah and Arbind Singh, has been sent to Mr. Maken and Mr. Chauhan.

The petition has urged the Union Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and the Maharashtra Chief Minister to ensure immediate stopping of evictions and reinstatement of evicted vendors in their plac

es, compensation to the family of the vendor Madan Jaiswal who died in police action in Mumbai on 11 January, 2013 and recognition of all natural markets and certificate of vending to vendors/hawkers in Mumbai.

The petition says, “The current eviction drive of hawkers in Mumbai has surpassed all limits of actions against the urban poor. The worst situation prevails in the Western region of the city where all 15 police stations falling under the area from Bandra to Jogeshwari have started evicting hawkers with brutal force. In Kalina and Ville Parle areas, the private security guards have been employed by the police to come heavily on the hawkers”. It adds, “The marauding police make raids and start abusing and beating hawkers before arresting them. Women vendors are mostly targeted as they are viewed as weak and helpless. The arrested hawkers are being fined heavily with an amount of not less than Rs. 1,200.The eastern region of the city is also witnessing continuous police raids against hawkers”.

The petition states, “The intensity of these evictions started following the death of a hawker in a similar raid on 11 January 2013. The Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Vasant Dhoble, who was conducting the drive, was subsequently transferred. From the moment this happened, the police and the municipal authorities have come out in full force and have started evictions against all hawkers in the city and its suburbs. It appears as if the concerned authorities are taking revenge for the transfer of their colleague. The police have given statements to the media that they will not stop the raids until all hawkers between Bandra and Jogeshwari are evicted permanently”.

The signatories state in the petition, “This eviction drive has caused tremendous loss of livelihoods to the affected hawkers who number nearly two lakhs. These people have been rendered in penury. There are also other sections of the population who have been similarly affected by the eviction of hawkers. These include vegetable growers in the region, hundreds of thousands of workers in micro and small factories and home-based workers (most of them poor women) who produce goods that are sold through hawkers and the urban poor who depend on hawkers for their requirements.”

Meanwhile, National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) has stepped up the campaign for the justice to hawkers in Mumbai.  Just after the police action led death of a hawker in Mumbai last month, NASVI had organized protests in Mumbai, Delhi and several cities and towns of the country demanding halt on forced eviction of hawkers, suspension of ACP Vasant Dhoble and compensation to the family of the deceased hawker. The street vendors’ body also had faxed and mailed memoranda to the concerned authorities in Delhi and Mumbai including Union Home Minister, Home Secretary, Maharashtra Chief Minister and State Home Minister.  NASVI also has launched an Online Campaign under which a petition to the Prime Minister, UPA Chairperson, HUPA Minister and Maharashtra Chief Minister has been posted and the citizenry is being requested to sign it to ensure justice to the hawkers in Mumbai.

NASVI launches anti- police terror campaign – Justice for Martyr Hawker Madan Jaiswal

Heat of Mumbai hawkers protest reaches national capital with street vendors forming human chain in Delhi demanding institution of murder charge against Mumbai ACP whose terror led to death of a hawker in Mumbai

 Agitators demand compensation of Rs. 25 lakh from Maharashtra government to the family of dead street vendor

New Delhi, 20 January:

The heat of Mumbai hawkers’ protests reached national capital on Sunday with street vendors forming human chain at Parliament Street in Delhi demanding institution of murder charge against the infamous Mumbai Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Vasant Dhoble whose action led to the death of a 45 years old hawker Madan Jaiswal in Mumbai on 11 January. The agitating vendors also demanded from the Maharashtra government to immediately provide compensation of Rs. 25 lakh to the family of the deceased hawker and threatened that if their demands were not met, the hawkers and vendors from Maharashtra and other states would assemble in Delhi to march to the Home Ministry.

Joining the human chain organized by the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) which launched a nationwide anti-police terror campaign on Sunday, the street vendors of Delhi made a shrill cry to make police accountable to the public and said that the vendors and hawkers make city streets safer as they keep vigil on the streets.  They said, “We are the eyes and the ears of city. We make markets and public places safe and secure. If we are not at railway and bus station premises, the areas would be prone to loot and crimes. We serve people, help local economy grow and make city inclusive and dynamic, but the authorities refuse to legalize us and give us the space and opportunities to earn a descent living.   The police and municipal officials exploit us financially, but when we refuse to entertain them, we face threats, harassment and forced eviction.”

Addressing the street vendors, NASVI national coordinator Arbind Singh called upon the vendors and hawkers to get organized and unionized in every market so that strong resistances could be mounted in cases of forced eviction and police atrocities.  He said, “After every incident, accident and outrage, we listen that the country needs police reform. Police reform essentially means making police accountable to the public, accountable to the citizen, accountable to the working poor and accountable to the civil society. It is really disturbing that the police in even cities like Mumbai and Delhi are not accountable to the public. They are accountable to their bosses sitting in home ministries.”

Describing the transfer of Mumbai ACP as  an ‘attempt to shield him and exercise to hush up the incident of police crackdown triggered death of a street vendor’, Mr. Singh  said, “ Just after the shocking incident in Mumbai on 11 January, we emailed and faxed protest letters to the Union Home Minister, Union Home Secretary, Union Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Maharashtra Chief Minister, Maharashtra Home Minister, Maharashtra DGP and Mumbai Police Chief as well as the National Human Rights Commission and demanded that the charges of murder  be lodged against the infamous ACP, he must be sacked and the state government  immediately provide compensation of Rs. 25 lakh to the family of the dead street vendor Madan Jaiswal. Now, we call upon the street vendors’ organizations of all states to reiterate the demands through faxing protest and demand letters to ministers and authorities in Delhi.”

NASVI chief said that the death of fruit vendor was not a natural death as the police and the medical authorities tried to rumour, rather it was  a death due to the  shock and awe created by the Dhoble brigade. He said, “The establishment treats tragedies according to its convenience. When a constable Subhash Tomar dies in Delhi during people protest, the police establishment gets outraged, but when a poor vendor Madan Jaiswal dies in Mumbai during police action, the agencies and the authorities do not feel ashamed.”

He said that though there is a National Policy for Street Vendors and the central government is in the process of bringing in a central law to protect the livelihood and social security rights of street vendors as mandated by the Supreme Court of India, street vendor like Madan Jaiswal is sacrificing his life fighting against the terror of the police and loot of municipal body.

Several street vendor leaders and NASVI representatives also addressed the protesters at the Parliament Street.

Meanwhile, according to a NASVI release, the anti- police terror campaign which started on Sunday would continue till 26 January in the first phase.  NASVI affiliate Azad Hawkers Union would organize a huge vendors/hawkers rally at Azad Maidan in Mumbai on 24 January. NASVI has called upon the street vendors’ representatives across the country to join the Mumbai Rally against reign of terror unleashed by the police and the municipal authorities against street vendors. The street vendors’ organizations in  northern  and southern states would organize week long protests and would send  protest and demand letters to the Union Home Minister, Union Home Secretary, Union Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Maharashtra Chief Minister, Maharashtra Home Minister, Maharashtra Director General of Police, Mumbai Police Chief as well as the National Human Rights Commission.