A coalition of civil liberties, human rights, student, labour organisations, Campaign Against State Repression (CASR), has condemned the arrest of Dr. Randall Sequeira, a doctor providing healthcare in Odisha’s Kalahandi and Rayagada districts, and Laxman Nayak, an activist associated with the Maa Mati Mali Surakhya Manch, and demanded their immediate release.
In a statement, CASR said the two were taken into custody by Bhawanipatna Town Police at around 11 pm on October 16. According to the organisation, they were neither served arrest memos nor informed of the reasons for their detention at the time. They were subsequently produced before a court in connection with Kashipur Police Station Case No. 85/2026. After their bail applications were rejected, both were sent to Rayagada Sub-Jail, the statement said.
CASR said the case reportedly relates to protests in Kantamal on April 6 and 7, 2026, during which police allegedly resorted to a lathi-charge and tear gas. The organisation alleged that the arrests raised concerns about the use of criminal cases against activists involved in movements opposing displacement and seeking to protect Adivasi land and natural resources.
The organisation also referred to the continued incarceration of Lada Sikaka, president of the Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti, and Lingaraj Azad, an adviser to the Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti and the Maa Mati Mali Surakhya Manch. It said the detention of activists associated with these organisations reflected a wider pattern of criminalisation of movements defending Adivasi rights in Odisha.
Extending its concerns beyond Odisha, CASR said communities opposing mining projects, mega-dams, land acquisition and displacement faced police action and criminal cases in several parts of the country. It cited the proposed Siang mega-dam project in Arunachal Pradesh, a proposed hotel project in Assam’s Kaziranga region, and struggles in Madhya Pradesh and other mineral-rich Adivasi areas as examples of conflicts involving local communities and development projects.
The organisation further alleged that security laws, including the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the National Security Act (NSA), were being used against activists and human rights defenders. It said that multiple criminal cases and repeated police action could also be used to intimidate people involved in protests, even when such laws were not invoked.
CASR demanded the immediate release of Sequeira and Nayak and the withdrawal of what it described as a fabricated case against them. It also called for the release of Sikaka, Azad and other political prisoners and activists incarcerated for defending people's rights.
The organisation sought an independent investigation into the alleged police violence during the Kantamal protests on April 6 and 7 and accountability for those responsible. It also called for an end to the criminalisation of anti-displacement movements and the alleged misuse of security laws against activists and communities resisting projects affecting their land and livelihoods.
Emphasising the rights of Adivasi and Indigenous communities, CASR said people should be able to defend their ancestral lands, forests, water resources and livelihoods without facing criminal prosecution for exercising their democratic rights.
Comments