Mass ProtestOrganised Against State Repressionon mass movements including Niyamgiri.
Bureau,Odishabarta
Bhubaneswar, 17/08/23: Despite the rain a mass protest was organized today in the state capital Bhubaneswar against the falsely arrest of the members of NiyamgiriSurakshya Samiti, physical torture, unspeakable atrocities on the agitators and villagers in Kashipur and Sijimali areas.
The abduction of Krishna Sikka, a member of NiyamgiriSurakshya Samition August 5, by the plainclothes police and the arrest of him in a case of 2018 after the protest of the NiyamgiriSurakshya Samitiand the filing of a habeas corpus in the Odisha High Court, has brought down the achievements of the Odisha government and the police.Similarly, on August 6, a false case was registered in the name of the members of the NiyamgiriSurakshya Samitiand the supporters of the movement for a peaceful democratic protest in front of the Kalyansinghpur police station.While it was condemned in all quarters, the police picked up Upendra Bag, a supporter of NiyamgiriSurakshya Samiti, from last August 11th and subjected him to untold physical and mental torture.The protestors alleged that in both cases, the Rayagada police had violated all human rights and DK Basu Judgement principles and regulations in relation to arrests.
The protesters alleged that in the case of keeping Krushna or Upendra’s family members in the dark for 2 to 4 days and severely beating them. Similarly, police brutality has crossed all limits in Kashipur and Sijimali areas of Rayagada district for the past one week.
The police brutalized the local people who were peacefully protesting all the exploitation and looting of Vedanta and Maitri companies.Police are stationed all over the area and houses are being broken into and women are being harassed.The men are being arrested and subjected to severe physical torture and are being prosecuted.In the meantime, around eight people were forcibly arrested and they were severely beaten and taken to court late at night. Such inhumane attacks on public movements exposed the anti-people policies of the government and the role of brokering companies.
The activists and supporters of various human rights and mass movements organized this protest today, demanding the withdrawal of the anti-people black law UPA, an end to state repression of public movements, and an end to corporate oppression policies in the name of development.
