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Tension mounts in Gajapati district ahead of bandh

Bibhuti Mishra in Gajapati

The lingering tension between the Pana Christians and the tribals in Gajapati district in Orissa could reach a flash point tomorrow when a bandh has been called by the latter to protest against the police firing last month in Mandrabaju village. Eight people, including a woman, were killed in the firing.

On December 10 last year a police platoon opened fire on a rampaging crowd that was demanding withdrawal of police forces from the village. The tribals in the village were angry with the police for allegedly siding with the Panas.

Meanwhile, it is now becoming clear that that though a land dispute may be at the centre of the animosity between the Panas and the tribals, the instigation in large measure is coming from the Naxalites belonging to the banned Peoples War Group.

"The Naxalites certainly would want to take advantage of the land dispute between the Panas and the tribals,'' said John Nayak, director, state intelligence.

The Panas and the tribals had lived peacefully together for ages till the former came in contact with Christian Missionaries and converted to Christianity. The missionaries introduced them to formal education and modern health facilities and their standard of living improved rapidly.

This, however, created a chasm between them and the tribals. This gap only widened when the Panas allegedly grabbed a large expanse of land belonging to the tribals.

When the administration failed to settle the land dispute, the tribals gradually came closer to the PWG and the CPI-ML.

Three fundamentalist frontal organisations of the PWG -- the Kui Labang Samaj, the Kui Sanskrutika Sangathana and the Chasi Mulia Samiti -- have since taken up the tribals' cause.

These frontal organisations are also the main forces behind tomorrow's bandh call.

Nayak believes that the emergence of the PWG and the CPI-ML in the area could mean big trouble. "The situation is tense and delicate. There should be a quick solution to the land ownership problem," he said.

Senior district officials, including Collector R B Naik and the superintendent of police, have not left Adaba after the December 30 clash at Mandrabaju.

Naik, however, does not see a quick solution to the problem. "The land disputes will take a lot of time to be sorted out. We on our behalf have formed peace committees in villages and they are yielding results.

Adequate arrangements have been made for tomorrow's bandh. But, Naik admits the situation remains tense.

Tribal-Christian tension explodes again in Orissa
A tribal time bomb is ticking away

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