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Malkangiri: Vehicular communication came to a grinding halt while educational and business establishments were thrown out of gear as Congress observed 12-hour shutdown in Malkangiri demanding immediate action against the district Collector Manish Agarwal for his alleged links in the death of his personal assistant, Debnarayan Panda.
Hundreds of party activists under the leadership of former MP Pradip Majhi picketed at several strategic locations of the town and blocked roads by burning tyres. The Zilla Adivasi Sangha also backed the closure, said reports.
“Though the bandh was called by Congress, the shutdown has received the support of the residents as shops, markets and other establishments have remained closed. The district Collector has been involved in corrupt activities and taking bribe from each and every section of people. We demand action against the Collector,” stated Majhi.
Congress activists stage road blockade by burning tyres as the party observes #MalkangiriBandh demanding immediate arrest of district collector over the death of his personal assistant Debanarayan Panda #Odisha pic.twitter.com/Xv2EAzQAoi
— OTV (@otvnews) January 10, 2020
On the other hand, opposition leaders have criticised the party for accusing the Collector in the death of Panda and making the people of Malkangiri suffer by calling the dawn to dusk bandh in the district.
“The death of the Collector’s PA is saddening but it should not be politicised. Police investigation into the incident is underway and whoever found guilty will be punished. The bandh called by Congress is unwarranted,” said Nabarangpur BJD MP Ramesh Majhi.
Malkangiri MLA Aditya Madhi said, “Accusing someone without evidence is not rational. We do not know the reason behind the bandh which has made people suffer as the Congress only knows why it has hit the streets.”
“Instead of showing sensitivity over the death of the PA, Majhi & Congress are doing politics on the matter. This is saddening and condemnable,” criticised the President of Koya Yuva Samaj, Adama Raja.
It may be noted that Panda’s body was recovered from Satiguda dam, a day after he went missing on December 27 last year. Panda’s wife Banaja suspected he might have committed suicide due to office work pressure while clearly stating that there was no family dispute.
Couple of days after the death of Panda, graffiti with ‘Corrupt Collector Killed Panda’, ‘Manish Chor Hey’, ‘Same With You’ slogans were found written on the boundary wall of the district Collectorate reportedly blaming collector Manish Agarwal for the death of Panda.
https://youtu.be/oqB98KNZa6s
