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Orissa tribals vow to attack cops

Bibhuti Mishra in Bhubaneswar

The tribals of Gajapati district are furious with the police.

They lost seven of their friends in a clash with the police on December 30 last year in a village under the Adaba police station. The tribals later burnt the houses of their rivals, Pana Christians, in two villages.

Apprehending more such attacks, many Pana families have been seeking shelter with the police.

Ten police platoons have been deployed in the area. No arrests have, however, been made.

Sources reveal that the tribals have been hatching a plan with help from some Naxals and their front Kui Labang Samaj to ''teach the police a lesson''. The police are seen to be backing the Pana families.

The tribals are armed with traditional weapons and even guns and bullets. A home department functionary confirmed that an intelligence report also mentioned this.

An old tribal of Mandrabaju village has said, "The police has to pay for the seven tribal lives. Our first job is to give a fitting reply to the police."

According to the Gajapati superintendent of police who has been stationed at Adaba apprehending reprisal by the tribals, "We are keeping a close watch on the situation. The tribals are simple and volatile. We don't want to do anything to annoy them."

But he admitted that if the tribals attack the police outposts the situation would go out of control.

An uneasy calm prevails in the area. ''But strangely the government is yet to show some urgency in solving the land disputes the tribals have with the Pana Christians -- which is the root of all evils,'' said a source.

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