Rights groups, opposition parties, and political leaders have condemned the arrests of Dalit activist Laxman Naik and doctor Randall Sequeira in Odisha, questioning the police action as part of a crackdown on Adivasi and Dalit communities opposing mining projects. The arrests are connected to a clash between police and residents in April over a road project linked to Vedanta Limited’s proposed Sijimali bauxite mine.
Rights groups, opposition parties, and political leaders have expressed their concerns about the arrests of Dalit activist Laxman Naik and doctor Randall Sequeira in Odisha. The arrests took place on the night of October 16 in Bhawanipatna town in Kalahandi district, in connection with a case linked to an April clash between police and residents in 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 and rioting, and booked under the Arms Act, according to reports by PTI. The police allege that Sequeira and Naik instigated Adivasi residents to attack security personnel during the protest in April. However, 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 requested 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 their phones were seized without a memo.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) Odisha State Committee on Tuesday condemned the arrests, alleging that they were ‘part of a campaign of state repression against Adivasi and Dalit communities’ who were ‘resisting mining projects linked to Vedanta and the Adani Group’. It alleged that more than 100 people had been jailed, and several criminal cases filed against those opposing mining projects in the region. The party has demanded the immediate release of jailed activists, the withdrawal of ‘politically motivated’ cases, and an independent judicial inquiry into the 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 criticized the arrests, alleging that it amounted 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 was 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. Vedanta secured the bauxite block through an auction in 2023.
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