Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president JP Nadda has formed a four-member inquiry committee to probe the violence during the Hanuman Jayanti procession in Odisha’s Sambalpur district early this month.
The committee comprising Rajya Sabha MPs Brij Lal, Samir Oraon, Aditya Sahu and Lok Sabha MP Jyotirmay Singh Mahato will visit Sambalpur and prepare a report based on the visit, people familiar with the matter said.
Communal clashes erupted in Odisha’s Sambalpur on April 12 in which 15, including 10 police personnel, were injured in stone pelting in the town during a motorcycle rally in the run-up to the Hanuman Jayanti.
Also Read: 80 communal riots occurred during Cong govt’: JP Nadda in Karnataka
The violence occurred when the group of Hanuman Jayanti Samanwaya Samiti comprising BJP, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal workers on bikes were on their way to Durga Mandir in Golbazar passing through minority-dominated areas of Motijharan, Bhutpada, Raza Nagar, Sumapalli, Kumbharpada and Daleipada.
Following the violence, on April 14, Chitamani Mirdha, a 30-year-old tribal youth from Sanasinghari village on the outskirts of Sambalpur town, was killed while returning home from the Hanuman Jayanti procession.
{{/usCountry}}Following the violence, on April 14, Chitamani Mirdha, a 30-year-old tribal youth from Sanasinghari village on the outskirts of Sambalpur town, was killed while returning home from the Hanuman Jayanti procession.
{{/usCountry}}According to the police, Mirdha and his friends were attacked by a mob with swords and hockey sticks who stabbed Mirdha to death. The incidents led to arson and the subsequent imposition of a curfew in the town. As the clash spilled over to the streets, many vehicles were damaged and some shops were set on fire. Police arrested over 100 people in connection with violence and the killing of a tribal youth on Hanuman Jayanti day.
On April 22, the state BJP unit wrote to Union home minister Amit Shah requesting to take steps for an inquiry by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the violence.
Also Read: Bihar ex-MLA Jawahar Prasad arrested over Sasaram communal violence case
“We condemn the heinous act of communal violence and demand an impartial investigation by the NIA to unravel the conspiracy behind the incident, and strict action against the perpetrators,” read the letter signed by BJP’s state unit president Manmohan Samal and other party MPs and MLAs.
“The violence and arson exposed the poor intelligence network of the Odisha police and the lack of foresight on its part to ascertain the consequences of inadequate security arrangement during the festival,” it added.