Odisha tribals demand withdrawal of UAPA cases slapped against them for holding protests

A tribal body, which has been protesting against bauxite mining in the eco-sensitive Niyamgiri hills in Kalahandi and Rayagada districts of Odisha for over a decade, has demanded immediate withdrawal of UAPA cases against its members.

The demand comes after the police framed charges under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 against nine members of Niyamgiri Surakshya Samiti for allegedly protesting 'police action against the left-wing extremism', a senior officer said.

In a press conference, NSS leader Lingaraj Azad on Saturday criticised the state government and the Rayagada district police for registering an FIR against the nine members of the tribal body under the provision of the UAPA.

A group of men and women had staged a demonstration in front of the Kalyansinghpur Police Station on August 6, seeking the whereabouts of two villagers who were allegedly picked up by policemen from Lanjigarh haat, Azad claimed.

'Initially, the police did not give the whereabouts of the two. Later, one of the villagers was booked for a 2018 rape case and the other was released,' he claimed.

Alleging that the state government was 'trying to stifle the local people's voice against the bauxite mining' in the eco-fragile zones of Kalahandi and Rayagada, Azad said, 'The police registered an FIR against nine members of our body, including me, under various sections of UAPA. I was not present at the protest site on August 6. They have abruptly framed charges.'

Rayagada Superintendent of Police Vivekanand Sharma could not be contacted for his comment, but Kalyansinghpur Police Station inspector-in-charge Sumati Mohanty, in the FIR, mentioned that around 200 people armed with lathi and weapons organised a procession at Parsali village to 'protest the police action against the Left-wing extremism'.

“This is yet another attempt by the police to stifle the voices of local people, especially that of the Dongria Kondh community of Niyamgiri, which has been protesting against bauxite mining,” Azad added.