Rayagada: Zilla Adivasi Mahasangh, a local tribal outfit here, Saturday called for Rayagada Bandh on January 5 seeking justice against the torture and murder of innocent tribals in the district. The announcement for the bandh was made by the president of the outfit Apalswami Kadraka, convener Basanta Kumar Ulaka, general secretary Jagannath Mandangi, and secretary Manjula Miniaka in a press conference. A tribal youth leader Bhagirathi Mandangi was brutally killed December 15 in 2010. Investigation into the murder was first taken up by the police and then by the Crime Branch.
However, even after 13 years of the incident the murder mystery has not yet been solved, members of the outfit said. “We have demanded a proper probe before the police and the government many times but in vein,” they rued. “Bhagirathi’s family has been waiting for justice for the last 13 years and if the government does not take any step in this regard till January 3, bandh will be observed January 5,” the outfit’s office-bearer warned. The outfit appealed to all associations in the district to extend their support to make the bandh successful.
