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Press Release, 28 August 2023

GASS Odisha Strongly Condemns Ongoing State Repression in Mining Areas of Odisha

Ganatantrik Adhikar Surakha Sangathan

• Provocative incidents are being instigated with the help of local police so that the protesting villagers could be arrested.
• Even though Adivasi people of these areas do not want development, the so called ‘Vikas’ is knocking at their doorstep – to destroy their land, forests and hills, above all, their livelihood

We, on behalf of ‘Ganatantrik Adhikar Suraksha Sangathan, Odisha’ strongly condemn the ongoing state repression in various proposed mining areas of south Odisha for last three weeks. On August 23, 2023, two office-bearers of the Mali Parvat Suraksha Samiti, Koraput, Abhi Sodi and Das Khara were picked up by plain clothed motorbikers. They are suspected to be the police in view of two similar cases we saw in the Niyamgiri area of Kalahandi district on August 5 and Sijimali and Kutrumali areas of Rayagada district on August 16. Despite the fact that the family members of both Abhi Sodi and Das Khara have filed separate FIR before the Patangi Police station, their where-about is still unknown.

In Niyamgiri area, Krushna Sikakkaa and Bari Sikakka of Lakhpadar village, the two Adivasi activists, while returning from Lanjigada weekly market were forcefully being abducted by plainclothed Odisha Police personnel on 5th August. Upon an enquiry by the Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti activists about the whereabouts of their fellow activists, the police denied their involvement. Thus on August 6, local tribals staged a protest in front of the Kalyansinghpur police station and submitted demand for their release. While they were returning, the local police forcibly tried to arrest another Adivasi activist named Drenju Krisikka of Lakhpadar village. The villagers unitedly resisted and their efforts prevented the arrest.

But, the local police mentioning the protest of Adivasis as “unlawful activities” have filed an FIR under highly undemocratic laws such as the UAPA and several sections of IPC against eight Adivasi activists associated with the Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti. Kalahandi district Ambadola village resident, Upendra Bag, against whom the FIR has been filed, was picked up by the Rayagada police. His arrest was not acknowledged until his son went to file habeas-corpus. He was then produced before the Court and sent to jail after three days of detention. His family members report that he has been tortured while in detention. How protest of tribals against illegal detention could be the activity of “terrorists” for which the state government has used UAPA? The threat of the government to stop exercise of minimum democratic rights by the people and to whitewash own wrongdoings, such use of the UAPA is the display of mere authoritarianism. The police, that were denying detention of Krushna, later forwarded under a false case filed in 2018, released Bari and sent to his village.

Though the state government has decided to hand over Bauxite mining from Sijimali located in Kashipur area of Rayagada district to Vedanta Company, the public hearing and Gram Sabha approval process is yet to be completed. In this situation, some office-bearers of Maitri Infrastructure and Mining India Private Limited, claiming that they have been awarded by the Vedanta company to perform mining work at Sijimali went to that mining area on 12th August with the help of the local police for site-visit. This action of Maitri Private Limited irked the local people and they protested such site-visit. This resulted into forceful abduction of Dhanafula Majhi, the former Sarpanch of Sindurghati Panchayat, also known as the office-bearers of the “Sijimali Kutrumali Suraksha Samiti”, and Sitaram Majhi and Anil Majhi, both the former Samiti Members by Rayagada police on August 16. They were arrested on 19th of this month as people’s protests escalated. Meanwhile, 21 villagers have already been arrested from Sijimali area under different sections of the IPC, Criminal Amendment Act and Arms Act. While avoiding the unlawful arrest, one of the villagers fell off the roof and got severe spine injury. Now he is being treated at M.K.C.G, medical college, Berhampur.

The act of protecting one’s own land, forest and nature is not a criminal act under the Cr.PC or IPC that the police can arrest someone for this. It has been observed time and again that in order to keep these protesting villagers behind the bar for a pretty longer period of time, provocative incidents are being instigated with the help of local police at first. And then after the villagers get agitated and show some reactions, random arrests are being made under various non-bailable sections of the IPC such as attempt to murder, dacoity, rioting, arson and applying the Criminal Amendment Act as well as the Unlawful Arms Act. For the police to arrest someone, someone must have done the crimes listed in the IPC. The same tactics of the state government took place during the gherao of Kalyansinghpur police station, as well as in Niyamgiri area and in Sijimali area of Kashipur.

Now similar incident is happening in the Maliparvat area of Patangi block of Koraput district. On August 23, 2023, some civilian posing themselves as policemen picked up Shri Abhi Sodi and Shri Das Khara, the two office-bearers of the “Mali Parvat Suraksha Samiti”, from two different places. Nearly, 42 villages are now opposing the proposed HINDALCO bauxite-mining project. The Odisha High Court cancelled the Public Hearing (October 2022) held by the State Pollution Control Board, Odisha and instructed to organise it again. In the subsequent Hearing (January 2023) the public expressed their opposition. Despite the cancellation of the Vedanta Company’s contract following the gram sabha’s decision in Niyamgiri, till date, the state government has not assured the local Dongria adivasis that the Niyamgiri hills will not be handed over to any company.

In the case of Sijimali, the state government is not questioning the Maitri Company entering the area without any legal permission. Even in the Maliparvat case, despite the High Court’s verdict, the state government did not review the pro-corporate involvement of the District administration. It is hard to believe that the state government desires to have development through democratic process.

Even though Adivasi people of those areas do not want development, the so called ‘Vikas’ is knocking at their doorstep. Because, aim of the government is to destroy their land, forests and hills, above all, their livelihood. It is not out of place to point out here that this recent clampdown of the Odisha govt. on the anti-mining resistance activists has to be seen in the context of the recent amendment to Forest Conservation Bill which ceased the existence of ‘deemed forests’ with no rhyme or reason . In Niyamgiri, as per reports, over 90 percent of the forests fall under this category. We are aware of the fact that this is meant to enable trade-offs between the mining corporate houses and the State and Central Governments.

We, on behalf of GASS, strongly condemn these anti people policies of the Governments, the police brutality, the process in which UAPA and Arms Act is being drastically applied with an aim to attack the rights of the democratic movement.

We also appeal to all political parties, progressive organisations, trade unions, writers and media persons to oppose the government’s repressive, undemocratic and destructive policies to save this planet from further destruction, so that, our earth can sustain longer.

Sd/-

(Golak Bihari Nath, President, and Deba Ranjan, General Secretary)

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Lathis, Axes Odisha Adivasis Traditionally Carry Cited for ‘Applying’ Anti-Terror Law UAPA

Counterview Desk

Hundreds of activists, citizens and people’s organizations from across the country have expressed anger at the “outrageous” imposition of the anti-terror Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) cases against nine adivasis and activists of the Niyamgiri Surakhya Samiti (NSS), which spearheaded the struggle against bauxite mining by Vedanta Company, in the ecologically bio-diverse Kalahandi and Rayagada regions of Odisha.

In an open letter to Naveen Patnaik, chief minister of Odisha, they have asked him to immediately “quashing of the fabricated FIR filed under UAPA and other serious provisions of IPC against adivasi leaders and supporters of NSS, an end to arbitrary abductions and repression of adivasis, as well as corporate-enabled loot of natural resources in Odisha.”

The letter to the CM states, “We have perused through the FIR and are aghast to note the cavalier and ill-motivated manner in which allegations have been levelled against the aforesaid 9 persons. For instance, lathis and axe which many Dongria Kondh adivasis traditionally carry, are being cited as a ground for filing this FIR under UAPA!”

Text:

We the undersigned, on behalf of National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) and numerous democratic organizations as well as concerned citizens from across India and beyond, are outraged at the recent developments in Odisha, which has resulted in arbitrary abductions, arrests as well as filing cases against 9 leaders of the Niyamgiri Surakhya Samiti (NSS) and its supporters, under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Action (UAPA) and other stringent provisions of the Indian Penal Code.

The Statement by Odisha activists Lingaraj Azad, Prafulla Samantara, Narendra Mohanty and Biswapriya Kanungo, read with the PUDR statement and Statement by Campaign Against State Repression (CASR) describe in detail the disturbing circumstances, in which these charges have been foisted, through FIR 87/2023, dated 6th August. Those charged include Lada Sikaka and Drenju Krushka (leaders of NSS), Manu Sikaka and Samba Huika (youth leaders of NSS), Lingaraj Azad, (Advisor of NSS), British Kumar (Khandualamali Surakhya Samiti), Lenin Kumar (poet and solidarity activist), Gobinda Bag (villager associated with NSS) and Upendra Bag (member spokesperson of NSS). Of them, Upendra was kept in police custody for 4 days and later lodged at Rayagada Jail on 14th August, on the eve of ‘independence’ day! Reportedly, he was threatened, hit and slapped multiple times, during detention.

We have perused through the FIR and are aghast to note the cavalier and ill-motivated manner in which allegations have been levelled against the aforesaid 9 persons. For instance, lathis and axe which many Dongria Kondh adivasis traditionally carry, are being cited as a ground for filing this FIR under UAPA! Likewise, imputations linking the NSS to ‘left wing extremism’ are completely unfounded. We condemn this abuse of process of law and brazen attack on the right of the democratic movement to peaceful resistance.

We have been noticing with concern the developments since 5th August, when two youth leaders of the NSS (Krushna Sikaka, village Patangpadar and Bari Sikaka, village Lakhpadar) mysteriously ‘went missing’. They were reportedly abducted by plainclothes policemen from Lanjigarh, where they had come to interact with people regarding the upcoming Indigenous People’s Day on 9th August. Despite multiple requests, even senior police authorities denied any information of their whereabouts. Apparently, instead of addressing their concerns, the adivasi people were mocked at by some police during the protest. Further, when the police tried to take into custody Drenju Krisika, leader of NSS, the same was thwarted by people’s unity.

Subsequent to mass protests before the Kalyansinghpur police station on 6th Aug, and a writ petition filed in the High Court, Bari Sikaka was ‘returned’ by the police, but Krushna was shown as ‘accused’ in a 5 years old rape case. It baffles us as to why has Krushna been suddenly picked up in Aug, 2023, if the FIR was filed way back in 2018, and he has all along been in the public domain, participating in open meetings. It is learnt that sometime in July, another local person Bali Karkaria (Denguni village) was also allegedly abducted in similar circumstances on unsubstantiated charges and lodged in a jail.

We are aghast at the suspicious ways in which adivasi leaders, especially youth, are being abducted by police, kept in long periods of detention in violation of law, and some of them are shown as ‘arrested’ after many days! It is learnt that there have been midnight police raids at 3 villages in Kashipur block of Rayagada district on the 13th and 16th Aug, after which several adivasi youth are reported ‘missing’. All of this shows the state government in a very poor light.

The historic struggle of Dongria Kondh Niyamgiri adivasis against bauxite mining in the ecologically bio-diverse Kalahandi and Rayagada regions, by Vedanta Company is known world-over. Even the Hon’ble Supreme Court upheld the rights of the adivasi Gram Sabhas in its landmark judgement of 18th April, 2013. Despite this the state government has not only watched over, but also enabled excesses by corporations like Vedanta, while militarizing the adivasi regions. We are furious that a repressive law like UAPA is being used to clamp down on the movement, thus also violating the spirit of the verdict of the Apex Court. In the light of this appalling situation, we demand, the Odisha government to immediately:

• Drop all the charges and quash FIR against the adivasi leaders, activists and supporters of the Niyamgiri Surakhya Samiti, filed under UAPA and IPC.
• Make public the whereabouts of all persons detained / arrested, during the month of August and details of pending cases against them.
• Uphold the democratic rights of the people of Niyamgiri and all movements in Odisha to peaceful resistance and stop the spree of abductions and arrests, as well as, corporate-enabled violence and militarization in adivasi areas.
• Institute a fair inquiry into the questionable FIR against Krushna Sikaka in 2018 and release him from jail, pending the inquiry. RELEASE Upendra Bag from jail as well immediately.
• Refrain from undertaking / permitting any mining related activities or arbitrary action, including under the Forest Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2023 in violation of the rights of Gram Sabhas under the V Schedules of the Constitution, FRA, 2006; PESA Act, 1996 and Judgement of Supreme Court dt. 18th April, 2013.

Sir, even a decade after the judgment of the Apex Court, it is deeply painful to note that the adivasis of Niyamgiri have to keep fighting, for securing their forests and mountains from corporate plunder. The Odisha Govt, has a mandate to work for its ordinary people, not for the profiteering of mega corporations. We hope you will show true statesmanship in putting an end to this persecution of adivasi mulvasi communities, fighting for their jal, jangal, zameen and grassroots sovereignty.

(Courtesy: Counterview, a newsblog that publishes news and views based on information obtained from alternative sources, which may or may not be available in public domain, allowing readers to make independent conclusions.)