BHUBANESWAR: The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has issued an arrest warrant against Collector of Keonjhar district Ashish Thakare for repeatedly failing to appear before it for hearing.In a directive to the Director General of Police (DGP), Sunil Kumar Bansal, the NCST has ordered him to arrest and produce Thakare before the Commission at New Delhi.
The Collector has earned ire of the Commission as he did not appear before it despite being summoned eight times in connection with complaints related to tribal affairs. The latest was on April 4, 2022. The Commission has asked the DGP to apprise it about steps being taken in this regard by 11 am on April 13.
The letter to the DGP said a notice was issued to the Collector on March 23 to appear before it at 4 pm on April 4 at the conference hall of the State guest house at Bhubaneswar, but he failed to do so. “The collector absconds and keeps out of the way for the purpose of avoiding service of the summons,” the Commission stated.
Thakare was summoned in a matter of non-payment of compensation and employment benefits to one Dara Singh Khutia for land acquisition by an industry. The petitioner is a resident of Lahanda village in Keonjhar district.
Following the non-appearance of the Collector before the statutory body on April 4, the NCST invoking the powers of the civil court vested on it under clause (8) of Article 338 A issued an arrest warrant on Tuesday. The Commission had asked to the Collector to appear before it on June 22, June 23, June 25, 2021, September 21, 2021, September 27, 2021, October 1, 2021, October 6, 2021 and January 28, 2022.