Post News Network
Bargarh, Feb 6: Tribal families in Jhagada Behera village under Ambabhona block of the district have alleged harassment by forest department officials by implicating them in false cases. Despite some persons pleading innocence in a case of stealing timber from the forest near the village, the
forest department officials have made their lives difficult by harassing them
after conducting raids at midnight, the villagers alleged.
The villagers further alleged that the forest department officials have been misbehaving with women during raids at midnight. They have also arrested some villagers by invoking false charges against them, the villagers said.
The villagers also complained that police officials, too, did not pay any heed to their grievances when they went to Ambabhona police station to lodge a complaint. As the police refused to
accept their complaint, the villagers
approached the district superintendent of police Thursday evening to lodge their complaint.
As SP Umashankar Das was away, the villagers handed over their complaint to additional superintendent of police Satyanarayan Panda. On receiving the complaint, the ASP said Ambabhona IIC has been asked to probe the allegation of harassment by forest department officials. A team of six/seven officials from Lakhanpur forest range office went to Jhagada Behera village in the midnight of January 29. The forest officials broke into the houses of some villagers charging that they were involved in stealing of timber from the nearby forest. Before the villagers could react, the forest officials dragged some persons out of their houses and started beating them. Some villagers also sustained injuries after being beaten by the forest officials.
The barbaric act of the wayward forest officials did not stop there as they misbehaved with some women. The forest officials even took Kanhu Charan Pradhan, Munu Bhaeinsal, Mahargu Bhaeinsal, Gurucharan Mirdha and Pistalu Mirdha to the range office and later produced them in a court on charges of stealing timber. The arrested villagers were then sent to a jail. They, however, were released on bail later. After coming out of jail, they went to Ambabhona police station to lodge a complaint, but in vain. After the police refused to accept their complaints, they approached the SP. Dipak Pradhan, Bhubaneswar Patra, Laxman Munda, Hati Mahanta, Dusmanta Bhue, Neela Bhul and Buthi Mahanta went to the village in the night, the complaint said.
The complainants further alleged that the forest officials have also threatened them of dire consequences if they disclose the matter to anybody. The forest officials also threatened the complainants to dump their bodies after killing them if they dare to lodge complaint.