Kalyansinghpur: Protesting the alleged encounter of a tribal youth, about 600 Dongria Kondhs of 12 villages at the foothills of Niyamgiri in Rayagada district Monday gheraoed the police station here wielding traditional weapons.
The protest was led by Ramesh Samantray, president of Lokshakti Abhiyan, a local outfit.
In a case of mistaken identity, Manda Kadraka of Dangamati was allegedly killed during a combing operation February 27. Following the incident, locals lodged a complaint with SP K Shiva Subramani seeking compensation of Rs 50 lakh for Kadraka’s family and dismissal of officials involved in the incident.
After gathering at the inspection bungalow here, the Dongrias took out a rally shouting slogans against the police. They demanded a thorough probe into the killing of Manda and stringent action against the accused.
They opposed the fresh move to convene gram sabhas in Niyamgiri region on the issue of leasing out the hills for mining. “Police are keeping tribals under constant threat with an objective to offer mineral resources of the district to Vedanta,” they alleged.
Additional SP Laxman Kumar Patel said a DSP level officer has been appointed to probe the alleged encounter case.
Three platoons of police were deployed at the protest site to keep the situation under control while ambulance, fire brigade personnel and jawans were kept ready to handle any eventuality. PNN
