After Arrest Warrant, Keonjhar Collector To Depose Before National Tribal Panel Tomorrow

Bhubaneswar: Keonjhar Collector Ashish Thakare will depose before National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) on Tuesday. DGP Sunil Bansal has directed IG Amitendra Nath Sinha to ensure his deposition, official sources said.

Taking strong exceptions to the collector’s failure to appear before it on April 4, the NCST had earlier issued an arrest warrant against him. In a letter titled “Warrant of Arrest of Witness”, the national tribal panel had asked the DGP to “arrest and bring” Keonjhar collector before the commission in New Delhi. The Commission had also asked the DGP to apprise it about steps being taken in this regard by 11 am on April 13.

The collector was summoned in a matter of non-payment of compensations and employment benefits to one Dara Singh Khutia under land acquisition by the ISLF Ltd. The petitioner is a resident of Lahanda village in Keonjhar district.

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He reportedly did not appear before it despite being summoned eight times in connection with complaints related to tribal affairs.

According to a report published in The Hindu, tribal daily wagers from particularly vulnerable tribal groups of Kumundi, Talakaisari, Suakati and Mahadeijoda gram panchayats of Banspal and Sadar blocks of Keonjhar had also petitioned the panel after losing jobs following the introduction of modern machinery in two mines run by Odisha Mining Corporation at Gandhamardan in Keonjhar district.