Rights groups and opposition parties have condemned the arrests of doctor Randall Sequeira and Dalit activist Laxman Naik, alleging that they are part of a wider crackdown on Adivasi and Dalit communities resisting mining projects.
Rights groups and opposition parties have criticized the arrests of doctor Randall Sequeira and Dalit activist Laxman Naik in Odisha. The police action took place on October 16 in Bhawanipatna town, Kalahandi district, in connection with a case linked to an April clash between police and residents in the Rayagada district.
The clash occurred during protests against a road project linked to Vedanta Limited’s proposed Sijimali bauxite mine. Both activists have been charged with offences including attempted murder, rioting, and violations under the Arms Act, as per Police statements reported by PTI.
Civil society groups and opposition leaders have questioned the arrests, pointing out that neither activist was named in the first information reports relating to the April clash. Jan Swasthya Abhiyan, a public health non-governmental organisation, on Sunday demanded the immediate and unconditional release of both activists. The group also demanded the withdrawal of all cases against them and an independent inquiry into ‘the larger process of intimidation, arrests and threats in the entire area’.
In a statement, the group said that Sequeira had worked with Adivasi communities in Kalahandi and Rayagada for years. It said his work on the social and mental health challenges faced by communities affected by mining could not be ‘termed a crime’. The group alleged that the two men were taken from their homes without warrants and that their phones were seized without a memo.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) Odisha State Committee on Tuesday condemned the arrests, alleging that they are part of a campaign of state repression against Adivasi and Dalit communities resisting mining projects linked to Vedanta and Adani Group. The party alleged that more than 100 people have been jailed and several criminal cases filed against those opposing mining projects in the region.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) Odisha State Committee has demanded the immediate release of jailed activists, the withdrawal of ‘politically motivated’ cases, and an independent judicial inquiry into police action. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged that Sequeira and Naik were detained because they had supported protests by Adivasi and Dalit communities against bauxite mining projects.
Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra also criticised the arrests, alleging that it amounts to a ‘mockery of the law and due process’. Addressing Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on a social media post, Moitra alleged that the government is acting in the interests of Vedanta and Adani.
The case relates to a clash in Kantamal on the night of April 6 and April 7, when police entered a village in Rayagada, amid protests against a road project linked to Vedanta Limited’s proposed Sijimali bauxite mine. The residents were opposing the construction of a roughly 3-km road from Purlong to Sagabari Ghat, which would provide access to the mine in the ecologically sensitive Sijimali hills.
Source:
Scroll.in
