Odisha: Congress demands arrest of those who assaulted Dalit men in Ganjam

The Congress on Thursday, 26 June, demanded the immediate arrest of the prime accused in the assault of two Dalit men in Odisha’s Ganjam district, calling the incident a grave failure of law enforcement.

The victims, Babula Nayak and Bulu Nayak of Singipur panchayat, were allegedly tonsured, assaulted, and forced to crawl on their knees after being accused of cattle smuggling at Jahada in Kharigumma village under Dharakote police station limits on 22 June.

A fact-finding team of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) led by Rama Chandra Kadam met the men and also held discussions with local residents and the police.

Speaking to reporters in Bhubaneswar on Thursday, 26 June, after visiting the spot, Kadam said the victims were transporting cows in an auto from Hariour to their village when they were caught by a group of self-proclaimed ‘cow protectors’ at Kharigumma.

"The mob demanded Rs 30,000 from the duo. When they refused, they were assaulted, tonsured, forced to crawl on their knees, eat grass and drink drain water," he alleged.

During the assault, which took place in broad daylight, the police did not come to their rescue though there is a local police station just 6 km from the spot, said Kadam, who is also the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader.

"The accused used to extort money from the public as ‘cow protector’ and a senior minister of the BJP government is giving protection to them," he alleged.

Kadam claimed the police were yet to arrest the prime accused, Rajesh Samal, who escaped after the incident.

The police has so far arrested nine people, including a juvenile, for their alleged involvement in the incident.

The Congress also demanded compensation of Rs 10 lakh for each of the victims.

Meanwhile, the AICC has sent another team comprising the party's SC wing chief and ex-minister Rajendra Pal Gautam, MPs Manoj Kumar Ram and Vamsi Krishna Gaddam, and former OPCC chief Jayadev Jena for a field-level inquiry.