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Police Deployment in Tribal Villages in the Interest of Mining Companies and Arrest of People’s Movement Leaders
In the name of development, areas covered by the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, such as Kashipur and Thuamul Rampur, could turn into sites of violence and repression.
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Statement by Concerned Citizens in Protest Against the Arrests
At around 4:30 p.m. on September 10, 2026, Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti leader Lad Sikaka, after securing bail from the Lanjigarh court in two old cases, was returning home along with his lawyer and six other relatives. Near Kalyansinghpur, an armed police force led by the IIC of Kalyansinghpur Police Station, the SDPO of Kesinga, and the IIC of Biswanathpur Police Station stopped their vehicle and forcibly took him away.
Approximately two hours after this incident, armed police forces were deployed at the entry points of two key villages involved in the movement against Vedanta’s Sijimali bauxite project: Kantamal, under Kashipur Block, and Tala Ampadar, under Thuamul Rampur Block.
Following these two incidents, an atmosphere of fear and panic has spread throughout the area. We, members of the legal community, human rights organizations, civil society, and various political groups, strongly condemn and protest against the police’s forcible arrest and armed presence. We demand the immediate release of Lad Sikaka and the withdrawal of police forces from the two villages.
It is a matter of concern that even approximately 20–22 hours after Lad Sikaka was taken away, there was no information about where he had been kept. His lawyer and the relatives who were present at the time of the incident submitted a written complaint to the Rayagada SP in this regard, but they too were not provided with any information. The police did not inform his family either. In other words, the police did not comply with the Supreme Court guidelines concerning arrests.
Twenty-four hours after the incident, information emerged that after taking Lad Sikaka away, the police had taken him to various places and eventually produced him before a court at around 10:30 p.m. on September 10 and sent him to jail. It also became known that there were 11 cases against him, including serious charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and charges relating to waging war against the country.
It is worth recalling that, on March 15 this year, on the basis of an old case (No. 349/2017), the Lanjigarh JMFC had declared Lad Sikaka an absconder and directed the officer-in-charge of Kalyansinghpur Police Station to seize his property. Lad Sikaka filed a petition against this order before the Odisha High Court, and the Hon’ble High Court quashed the order and directed him to appear before the Lanjigarh court and obtain bail. On that day, the Lanjigarh court also granted him bail in another case.
It should also be recalled that, after Vedanta was granted the lease to mine bauxite at Sijimali, villages at the foothills of Sijimali in Thuamul Rampur Block of Kalahandi district and Kashipur Block of Rayagada district have, since August 2023, been carrying out a democratic struggle under the leadership of the Maa Mati Mali Suraksha Manch. Instead of engaging in dialogue with them, the government has been creating divisions within local communities in an effort to undermine the movement. It has continuously attempted to destroy an atmosphere of peace and coexistence. When those efforts have failed, the movement has been portrayed as criminal and repression has continued against the people.
Over the past three years, at least 43 police cases have been filed, naming large numbers of Adivasi and Dalit women and men as accused, with some also being sent to jail. For example, within just one month, from March 8, 2026 to April 8, 2026, 24 people were sent to jail, 217 people were named as accused, and 1,140 people were placed in the category of “other accused.”
The inhuman atrocities committed by the police when they entered Kantamal village at 3 a.m. on the night of April 7 created an uproar not only in Odisha but across the country. Courageously confronting this bulldozer-style approach to development, the people have so far succeeded in preventing mining operations.
In the same area, widespread public opposition has also emerged against Adani’s proposed Kutrumali bauxite mine. When news of the environmental public hearing reached local residents in May, they strongly opposed it. Subsequently, the State Pollution Control Board announced that the hearing had been postponed.
The Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti, under the leadership of Lad Sikaka, has continuously expressed solidarity with and support for all these people’s movements and has been conveying a message of united struggle for the protection of water, forests and land.
In this context, it is worth mentioning that Lingaraj Azad, adviser to the Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti and National Secretary of the Samajwadi Jan Parishad, who has been actively involved in the movements in the Sijimali and Kutrumali areas, has been arrested and kept in jail since March. When he obtains bail in one case, another case is filed against him, apparently making arrangements to ensure that he cannot get out of jail. Similarly, on August 28, one of the leading figures of the Maa Mati Mali Suraksha Manch, Hiramal Naik, was arrested and sent to jail by the Kalahandi police.
We firmly believe that the arrest of Lad Sikaka and Lingaraj Azad, or the cordoning-off of the villages of Kantamal and Tala Ampadar, are not isolated incidents. Rather, they are part of a planned campaign to forcibly impose mining and industrialization for corporate profit.
In the recent past, both the Central and State governments have been successively leasing bauxite mines in the Eastern Ghats to different companies. For example, the Balda bauxite mine in Nandapur Block has been leased to Adani; the Karnapodakonda mine in Narayanapatna Block and the Karlapat bauxite mine (Khandual Mali) in Thuamul Rampur Block have been leased to Vedanta; and the Serubandh mine in Pottangi has been leased to NALCO.
Four more bauxite mines in the Kashipur–Tikiri area of Rayagada district are in the auction process. There are vigorous plans for an investment of ₹1.10 lakh crore by Adani in Odisha’s aluminium industry.
Recently, the Central Government has attempted to accelerate this process further by amending the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act. At the same time, it has already declared that the Forest Rights Act contains no provision concerning the Gram Sabha. In other words, forest land can be converted into non-forest land for mining without the consent of the Gram Sabha.
However, against all these projects and processes, local communities—particularly Dalit and Adivasi communities—have been struggling to protect their livelihoods and cultural identity and have, in many places, succeeded in preventing mining operations so far.
Joining their voices, environmentalists in the state, various political groups, trade unions, democratic organizations, and even retired bureaucrats have also raised their voices questioning indiscriminate mining.
In such a situation, companies and the state government are arresting leading figures of the movements and surrounding militant villages in order to suppress people’s voices by force and facilitate mining. They are also sending a message that raising one’s voice against the interests of companies amounts to a crime and is therefore subject to repression.
We fear that the path being adopted by the government of suppressing democratic voices in order to facilitate mining will create a dangerous situation. The Kashipur and Kalinganagar firing incidents stand as evidence of this. In the name of development, areas covered by the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, such as Kashipur and Thuamul Rampur, could turn into sites of violence and repression.
Moreover, indiscriminate mining will cause irreversible damage to Biodiversity and water resources across a vast area of the Eastern Ghats. At a time when the climate crisis is intensifying day by day, it is easy to foresee that an extractive mineral industry will push the future of coming generations into darkness.
While appealing to the government to respect democratic values and constitutional rights and to maintain community life and a harmonious atmosphere in the concerned Scheduled Areas, we, as concerned citizens, demand that:
- Lad Sikaka, Lingaraj Azad and Hiramal Naik be immediately released from jail.
- Armed police forces be withdrawn from the Sijimali area and the daily lives of the people be restored to normal.
- The leases for bauxite mining be cancelled, respecting public opinion.
- All criminal cases filed against activists of the people’s movements be withdrawn.
List of Signatories
- Prafulla Samantara, Environmentalist
- Krishna Mahanty, Senior Gandhian leader
- Sudhir Pattnaik, Media and social activist
- Bishwapriya Kanungo, Lawyer and human rights activist
- Ranjana Padhi, Writer and social activist
- Anil Kumar Mallik, State Vice-President, Bhim Army, Odisha
- Dr. Biswajit, Gandhi Peace Foundation
- Srimanta Mahanty, Secretary, Organization for Protection of Democratic Rights, Odisha
- Narendra Mahanty, Advocate; Convener, Campaign Against False Cases and NAPM (Odisha)
- Deb Ranjan, Filmmaker and social activist
- Bharat Majhi, Poet
- Pratap Nayak, State Secretary, All India Kisan Mazdoor Sabha
- Kedar Sabar, All India Adivasi Forum
- Mahendra Parida, General Secretary, AICCTU
- Dandapani Mahanty, General Secretary, Forest Mazdoor Union
- Comrade Hena, Basti Suraksha Manch
- Comrade Pramila, All India Revolutionary Women’s Organization
- Comrade Tuna, Adivasi Bharat Mahasabha
- Comrade Parbati, MGNREGA Workers’ Union
- Comrade Bichitra Kumar Patra, TUCI
- Comrade Ramachandra Badatia, Odisha Construction Workers’ Union
- Comrade Gobinda Ram Sahu, All India Revolutionary Farmers’ Organization
- Comrade Minati Bhoi, Domestic Women Workers’ Union
- Comrade Shankar, Odisha State Secretary, CPI (ML) Red Star
- Nirakar Nayak, State Secretary, Chasi Mulia Sangha, Odisha, AIKMKS
- Siddhartha Kar, Teacher and social activist
- Rajan, People’s Movement Solidarity Activist
- Sharanya, Adivasi Movement Solidarity Activist, Koraput, Odisha
- Pranab Jena, CPDRS
- Sushant Jena, State Co-Convener, AIFTU (New)
- Saroj Mahanty, Poet
- Samir Ranjan, Poet
- Sini Sai, Adivasi leader, Kalinganagar
- Lenin Kumar, Poet
- Rumita Kundu, Political Prisoners’ Committee
- Pramodini Pradhan, PUCL
- Gargi Satapathy, Journalist
- Surendra Tapsu, Political and social activist
- Nigam, Writer and social activist
- Sangram Mallik, President, Ambedkar Lohia Vichar Manch
- Prashant Paikray, Spokesperson, Jindal-Posco Resistance Struggle Committee
- Dhananjay Deep, President, All Odisha Scheduled Caste Federation
- Digambar Duria, Advocate, Bhawanipatna (Dharamgarh)
- Suresh Sangram, Samajwadi Jan Parishad, Bhawanipatna
- Upendra Bag, People’s Movement Activist, Rayagada
- Bhabanishankar Jena, INTUC, Rayagada
- Krishna Sikaka, Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti
- Har Bania, Jai Kisan Andolan, Bargarh
- Balabhadra Malik, Chasi Mulia Suraksha Samiti, Kandhamal
- Purnachandra Pradhan, Senior Advocate, Bhawanipatna
- Babaji Charan Jena, Social activist
- Lilu Das, Bahujan Movement
- Professor Surendra Kumar Jena
- Sachidananda Majhi, Maa Mati Mali Suraksha Manch
- D. G. Pradhani, Adivasi Samaj
- Deb Prasad Ray, Lohia Academy, Bhubaneswar
- Tirupati Gamang, Adivasi Sangharsh Morcha
- Rajib Sagaria, Journalist
- Satya Banchhor, Lower Sukhtel Submergence Area Struggle Council
- Satya Mahar, Sachetan Nagarik Manch, Kalahandi
- Avani Gaya, Advocate, Berhampur
- Khusiram Jani, Adivasi rights activist
- Rajib Ratan, Journalist
- Ananta, Lokmukti Sangathan, Jharsuguda
- Gopinath Majhi, Campaign for Living with Dignity, Odisha
- Biranchi Bariha, Campaign for Living with Dignity, Odisha
- Bhishma Pangi, Campaign for Living with Dignity, Odisha
- Bijay Swain, Campaign for Living with Dignity, Odisha
- Dr. Shricharan Behera, Researcher
- Baghamber Pattnaik, Human rights activist
- Damodar Behera, Left-wing leader
- Subas Sahu, Lawyer
- Bijay Kumar Panda, Lawyer
- Sharmistha Nath, Poet
- Rashmi Ranjan Jena, Lawyer
- Kshirod Rout, Lawyer
- T. S. Swaraj, Lawyer, Odisha High Court
- Bikash Swain, Lawyer, Odisha High Court
- Bismay Ray, Lawyer, Odisha High Court
- Babita Mahapatra, Poet
- Radhamohan, Social activist
- Prakash Kumar Samantsinghar, Right to Information activist
- Subas Shend, Social activist
- Bichitra Biswal, Columnist
- Azad Swati
- Anurag Das, Lawyer
- Swaroop Kumar Pal, Lawyer
Disclaimer:The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Rift.
