Odisha school siege ends: ‘Bow and arrow’ man apprehended after 4 days

Dhani Munda had taken over the Badjal upper primary school in Bonai area of Sundargarh since Saturday evening, with a 10-page letter demanding ₹100 crore.

Published on: Sep 26, 2024, 12:17:34 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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A tribal man in Sundargarh district of Odisha, who had taken siege of an upper primary school since Saturday terrorising people with bow and arrow, was nabbed by the police on Wednesday evening, ending a four-day-long stand-off.

Dhani Munda, the man who took siege of an Odisha school. (Sourced photo)

Dhani Munda had taken over the Badjal upper primary school in Bonai area of Sundargarh since Saturday evening, with a 10-page letter demanding ₹100 crore.

Munda climbed onto the roof of the Badajala school four days ago, armed with bows and arrows, and started threatening people, and even attacked the headmaster, injuring him on the head.

On Tuesday, Suresh Chandra Pradhan, the inspector-in-charge of Mahulapada police station sustained injuries after he was shot at by Munda with an arrow. The school suspended operations and locals too feared walking on the road nearby.

During the siege, Munda used the school ration and cooked meals for himself.

SDPO Swaraj Debata said a team of police, DVF personnel and fire services team using a steel gate as shield approached him before he was overpowered.

“He seems to be mentally unstable. We are trying to ascertain the exact motive behind his action,” Debata said.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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