'Fraudulent': Ex-civil servants urge President to halt Odisha tribal land dispossession

By A Representative

A collective of 81 retired civil servants from the Constitutional Conduct Group has written to the President of India expressing alarm over what they describe as the wrongful dispossession of tribal lands in Odisha’s Rayagada district. The letter, dated April 19, 2026, highlights violent clashes in Kantamal village where police personnel reportedly injured over 70 tribal residents attempting to protect their community rights.

The group argues that these actions disregard constitutional safeguards and Supreme Court precedents, including the landmark Niyamgiri judgment of 2013, which upheld the authority of Gram Sabhas under the Forest Rights Act to decide on mining projects in tribal areas.

The signatories allege that in Sijimali, less than 50 kilometers from Niyamgiri, fraudulent Gram Sabha resolutions were manufactured in 2023 to facilitate bauxite mining by Vedanta. According to villagers, non-residents were brought in to pose as participants, minors and even deceased persons were listed as attendees, and meetings were staged with police involvement.

Despite a writ petition filed in the Odisha High Court in 2025 challenging the resolutions, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change granted Stage I forest diversion clearance in December 2025, subject to Forest Rights Act compliance. Construction of a three-kilometer approach road began soon after, guarded by armed police, sparking the current unrest.

The letter underscores that these developments violate the Samatha judgment of 1997, which prohibits the transfer of tribal land to private entities without consultation and benefit-sharing. It also cites Article 39 of the Constitution, which obligates the State to secure social and economic justice.

The group warns that ignoring these principles risks repeating cycles of tribal unrest and loss of life, and criticizes the government for failing to incorporate landmark judgments into administrative training and revenue records.

Calling the situation a betrayal of the promise of equality and opportunity envisioned by Jaipal Singh Munda in the Constituent Assembly, the former officials urge the President to suspend the forest clearance, halt construction, and order a comprehensive inquiry into the authenticity of the Gram Sabha resolutions.

They also demand that criminal cases against tribal protesters be reviewed by the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes and that the gains of the Forest Rights Act be consolidated to secure livelihoods for tribal and forest-dwelling communities. The letter closes with a reminder of the Republic’s foundational values and a plea for just governance: “Satyameva Jayate.”

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