A global civil rights coalition, International Indigenous Peoples Movement for Self-Determination and Liberation (IPMSDL), has strongly condemned the intensifying arrests, criminal cases, and paramilitary deployment directed against Indigenous Adi communities in Arunachal Pradesh as tensions escalate over the contentious Siang Upper Multipurpose Project.
The confrontation centers on the proposed construction of a massive 11,000 to 12,500 megawatt dam that threatens to displace approximately 150,000 people from their ancestral lands in the Siang River valley. For more than a year, local residents have peacefully blocked survey efforts and pre-feasibility studies for the project, leading to growing unrest and demonstrations.
According to reports, protests intensified on October 1 against the heavy deployment of police and paramilitary forces sent to silence local residents. The situation escalated further when villagers clashed with paramilitary forces in Geku on September 28, followed by an alleged lathi-charge by security forces against protesters in Uggeng village on October 4. In the wake of these incidents, news and broadcasts from the protest sites have reportedly been blocked since October 5, and the Adi Students’ Union previously staged a 12-hour bandh to protest the heavy security footprint in the region.
The crackdown has also extended into administrative detentions and legal actions against key community voices. The Upper Siang district administration ordered the preventive detention of Omak Paron, Oson Paron, Adum Tayom, and Okut Paloh under the Arunachal Pradesh Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 2014, prompting local groups to question how meaningful dialogue can take place when community advocates are locked up.
Additionally, the Central Bureau of Investigation filed a case in September against Bhanu Tatak, alleging she received more than ₹17.6 lakh for unauthorized research projects between 2022 and 2025. Critics note that the case coincides with her vocal opposition to the dam and her role as legal counsel for arrested protesters, with observers pointing out that targeting lawyers and supporters represents an outright effort to intimidate, discredit, and weaken the popular movement.
While the Chief Minister has asserted that a large majority of the local population supports the dam project, farmers and community groups have countered by accusing the government of coercing villagers into signing memorandums of understanding, bypassing free, prior, and informed consent through intimidation, deployments, and criminal charges.
Voicing deep concern over these developments, the organization stated, “We strongly condemn the series of violent attacks against the residents of the Siang River valley,” while adding, “We call on the Government of India to respect the rights of the Indigenous Adi peoples to their land and waters, immediately end the crackdown and weaponization of law against their assertion of rights, and cancel the SUMP.”
Reaffirming its solidarity with the Adi people, the IPMSDL backed demands for the immediate and unconditional release of the detained individuals and urged global supporters to amplify the call to protect the Siang River valley and its indigenous inhabitants.
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