CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Wednesday constituted a joint advocates’ committee consisting of three petitioners’ and two State counsels for visiting Dhinkia in Jagatsinghpur on February 19 and submit a report on the situation in the area.
The court formed the committee while hearing three PILs which have sought protection of human rights of the people protesting against the proposed steel plant of Jindal Steel Works (JSW) in Dhinkia. Earlier the court had sought a report from the district authorities on the situation in Dhinkia since the lathi-charge by the police on protestors on December 14.
The Collector of Jagatsinghpur had submitted the status report on January 31. But when the PILs came up for hearing on Wednesday, the counsels for the petitioners alleged that the residents of Dhinkia who had fled the area after the police action were not returning to their village fearing arrests.
A division bench of Chief Justice S Muralidhar and Justice RK Pattanaik directed the committee to visit Dhinkia on Saturday and submit the report when the matter is taken up for hearing next on February 24.
The bench expected the committee to submit a joint report, but left it open for the members to file their respective reports on disagreement over the situation in Dhinkia.
In its order, the bench said, “In the meanwhile, if there are villagers, who apprehend of returning to the village for fear of safety or of arrest, their names be furnished by learned counsel for the petitioners to Debakanta Mohanty and J Katikia, additional government advocates who can then arrange for them to be escorted back to the village without any fear, harassment by way of threat of arrest or risk to their safety.”
The committee includes Sukant Kumar Dalai, Omkar Devdas, Prasant Kumar Jena (petitioners’ counsels), DK Mohanty and Janmejaya Katikiya (State counsels).
The three petitions which the Court had taken up for analogous hearing have challenged the high-handedness of the police against the protestors and sought direction to the authorities to withdraw police personnel from Dhinkia panchayat. Besides, the petitions have also sought withdrawal of all fake cases against the villagers who are protesting against the alleged attempt to forcefully acquire their land.