Skip to main content

Fake encounter in Odisha? Tribal, Dalit workers shot in an incident police have called "crossfire" with Maoists

By Our Representative
In an incident which human rights activists of Odisha have characterized as “fake encounter”, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in Kandhamal district of Odisha have allegedly shot dead six persons, including a child. They were all poor Adivasi and Dalit labourers. Four others were seriously injured. The firing took place in Malapanga forest under Tumudibandha police limits.
Human Rights Front convener Manoj Jena has described the incident as “fake encounter”, seeking the intervention of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC). Another rights campaigner, Biswapriya Kanungo, has said, since such incidents have been “frequently happening”, the government should “review its policy and strategy towards tackling Maoists.”
Demanding a special investigation team, which should directly report to court about its findings, Narendra Mohanty, convener of the Campaigning Against Fabricated Cases (CAFC), Odisha, families of the deceased should get Rs 50 lakh each.
The demand has come amidst chief minister Naveen Patnaik ordering a judicial probe into the incident and announced compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the family members of the dead.
While the police claimed that the labourers were killed in a “crossfire” between Maoists and CRPF personnel, activists say, it is “impossible” for a vehicle to enter an area where an encounter is going on and all 12 people traveling in the vehicle to get bullet injuries.
Reports say, the labourers “shot dead” were were returning from Balliguda, the block and sub-divisional headquarter of their village Gungudmaha under Parampanka gram panchayat, along with others after receiving their wages under the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) through bank.
The deceased have been identified as Kukal Digal and Luta Digal, both males, and three women, Timari Mallick, Bringuli Mallick and Midiali Mallick, apart from the two-year-old child of Luta Dugal.
They were part of a team of 12 people, who were returning to their village around 9.30 pm on Friday in a van after collecting their wages. The incident occurred when the villagers were about two kilometres away from their village.
Already, the incident has begun to acquire political overtones. Stating that innocent people were butchered by police, leader of opposition Narasingha Mishra said, being in-charge of the home department, Pathaik is “answerable” for the unacceptable state-sponsored massacre of its own people.
Terming the judicial probe ordered by the state government a “necessity” in view of the Supreme Court guidelines in the matter, he said, judicial probes in Odisha had become a joke because most of these never meet their logical end.BJP spokesperson Sajjan Sharma said the government has become aimless in its anti-Maoist operations.
A year ago, in a similar incident, on July 26, 2015 a couple identified as Duba Nayak and his wife Budi Nayak. were killed in firing by personnel of the Special Operations Group and the Central Reserve Police Force, deployed for anti-Maoist operation in Kotagarah block of Kandhamal district.

Comments

TRENDING

Importance of Bangladesh for India amidst 'growing might' of China in South Asia

By Samara Ashrat*  The basic key factor behind the geopolitical importance of Bangladesh is its geographical location. The country shares land borders with Myanmar and India. Due to its geographical position, Bangladesh is a natural link between South Asia and Southeast Asia.  The country is also a vital geopolitical ally to India, in that it has the potential to facilitate greater integration between Northeast India and Mainland India. Not only that, due to its open access to the Bay of Bengal, Bangladesh has become significant to both China and the US.

Unlike other revolutionaries, Hindutva icon wrote 5 mercy petitions to British masters

By Shamsul Islam*  The Hindutva icon VD Savarkar of the RSS-BJP rulers of India submitted not one, two,or three but five mercy petitions to the British masters! Savarkarites argue: “There are no evidences to prove that Savarkar collaborated with the British for his release from jail. In fact, his appeal for release was a ruse. He was well aware of the political developments outside and wanted to be part of it. So he kept requesting for his release. But the British authorities did not trust him a bit” (YD Phadke, ‘A complex Hero’, "The Indian Expres"s, August 31, 2004)

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

'BBC film shows only tip of iceberg': Sanjiv Bhatt's daughter speaks at top US press club

By Our Representative   The United States' premier journalists' organisation, the National Press Club (NPC), has come down heavily on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recent "attacks on journalists in India." Speaking at the screening of an episode of the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question,” banned in India, in the club premises, NPC President Eileen O’Reilly said, “Since Modi came to power we have watched with frustration and disappointment as his regime has suppressed the rights of its citizens to a free and independent news media."

Chinese pressure? Left stateless, Rohingya crisis result of Myanmar citizenship law

By Dr Shakuntala Bhabani*  A 22-member team of Myanmar immigration officials visited Rohingya refugee camps in Cox's Bazar to verify more than 400 Rohingya refugees as part of a pilot repatriation project. Does it hold out any hope for the forcibly displaced people to return to their ancestral homes in the Rakhine state of Myanmar? Only time will tell.

'A disaster in the making': Expansion of oil palm plantations in Northeast India

By Rupa Chinai, Ravi Chellam*  Until a few decades ago, India was nearly 100% self-sufficient in edible oils, with a diverse variety of oilseeds that were grown and consumed sustainably in keeping with the ecological and climatic conditions of different regions in the country. Today, India is highly reliant on palm oil imports to meet its vegetable oil demands. 

China ties up with India, Bangladesh to repatriate Rohingyas; Myanmar unwilling

By Harunur Rasid*  We now have a new hope, thanks to news reports that were published in the Bangladeshi dailies recently. Myanmar has suddenly taken initiatives to repatriate Rohingyas. As part of this initiative, diplomats from eight countries posted in Yangon were flown to Rakhine last week. Among them were diplomats from Bangladesh, India and China.

40,000 Odisha adolescent girls ask CM: Why is scheme to fight malnutrition on paper?

By Our Representative  In unique a postcard campaign to combat malnutrition, aimed at providing dietary diversity, considered crucial during adolescence, especially among girls, signed by about 40,000 adolescent girls from over 10,000 villages, have reminded Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik that his government's Scheme for Adolescent Girls (SAG), which converged with Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman  ( POSHAN ) 2.0 in 2021, is not being implemented in the State.

Natural farming: Hamirpur leads the way to 'huge improvement' in nutrition, livelihood

By Bharat Dogra*  Santosh is a dedicated farmer who along with his wife Chunni Devi worked very hard in recent months to convert a small patch of unproductive land into a lush green, multi-layer vegetable garden. This has ensured year-round supply of organically grown vegetables to his family as well as fetched several thousand rupees in cash sales.