A 43-year-old journalist of Odia daily, Dharitri, died in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast on Saturday afternoon while he was trying to go near posters put up by suspected Maoists warning people not to vote in the coming panchayat polls in Mohangiri village in Madanpur-Rampur block, police said.
Rohit Biswal, a reporter of Odia daily, Dharitri, was killed while he was trying to go near posters put up by suspected Maoists warning people not to vote in the coming panchayat polls. (Photo: Sourced)
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Rohit Biswal, a reporter of popular Odia daily Dharitri in Kalahandi district, had gone to Mohangiri village in Madanpur-Rampur block after receiving information about several posters put up by suspected Maoists calling for panchayat poll boycott near Karlarkhunta bridge. The panchayat polls in Odisha are scheduled to be held between October 16 and 24.
Kalahandi SP Dr Vivek M Saravana said the incident may have happened anytime between 12 and 12.30 pm.
“Since morning we have been receiving photos of Maoist posters put up in the area asking people to boycott the polls. Sometimes Maoists put up IEDs near such posters and we normally don’t rush to take out such posters unless the area has been sanitised by bomb disposal squads. I suspect the reporter must have stepped on the IEDs planted under the road or gone too close to the posters which may have triggered the explosion. We are yet to get any clarity on how this happened,” he said.
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Though the SP could not confirm about the death of the journalist, video clips of the incident emerged in which the injured body of the journalist lies next to a motorcycle which he was riding.
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Though the SP could not confirm about the death of the journalist, video clips of the incident emerged in which the injured body of the journalist lies next to a motorcycle which he was riding.
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The posters were allegedly put up by KKBN Division of CPI(Maoist) that is active in Kalahandi and Kandhamal border.
The SP said he would not be able to confirm the death till the bomb disposal squads completely sanitise the area as there are likelihoods of more IEDs being planted near the spot. There were several Maoist posters and banners stuck to trees. “CRPF jawans have cordoned off the area that is close to Kandhamal district and a known corridor of the rebels,” he said.
Biswal’s death is the first instance of a journalist in Odisha getting killed in a Maoist violence.
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In Chhatisgarh, Doordarshan journalist Achutynanda Sahu, a native of Odisha, and two police personnel were killed in the Aranpur sector of Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh in IED blast in October 2018.
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.
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