BALASORE: A strong sense of resentment is brewing among tribal residents in Nilagiri area following allegations of torture of community members by forest officials.
According to locals, three tribals, Sama Singh, Brajakishore Singh and Harimohan Singh of Khulia village under KC Pur gram panchayat, were taken into custody late at night five days ago on suspicion of involvement in wildlife poaching. The incident, which took place on on December 21, sparked outrage after allegations emerged that the trio were mercilessly beaten, stripped naked and tortured using stinging nettle leaves.
Despite repeated pleas from the detainees and their family members, it was alleged that range officer Subrat Behera and staff of Kuldiha Wildlife Sanctuary did not respond.
Brajakishore, who was recently released on bail after being remanded to judicial custody, alleged that the range officer confiscated his belongings and assaulted all three men at the range office during the night. “I requested the range officer to release us as we were not involved in any poaching. However, he did not believe us and instead arrested us under animal crime charges. We will approach the principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) seeking justice,” he said.
In protest, tribal residents along with members of the Vitamati and Jiban Jibika Surkshya Manch staged a mass demonstration in front of the Kuldiha range office on December 26.
The range officer, however, denied any allegation of torture, stating that the arrests were made strictly in accordance with wildlife protection laws.
The protest was withdrawn on the day after assurances from both the range officer and Nilagiri IIC Gobardhan Nayak that necessary steps would be taken to address the compensation issue.