Communal violence continued in the interior areas of Orissa’s Kandhamal district on Saturday even as Chief Minister visited Phulbani, the district headquarters town to take stock of the situation.
One church was burnt at Kupaguda village under G. Udaygiri block of the district during the morning hours. Also many houses were burnt down in Kiramal village under G. Udaygiri area and Lamangia village under Raikia block.
Reports indicated that around 50 houses were burnt down in Rajenpanga village under Daringbadi police station limits on Friday night. The areas witnessing more violence include Raikia, G. Udaygiri and Tikabali blocks.
Although the main road linking Phulbani with Berhampur remained open for traffic, miscreants blocked many interior roads making it difficult for the police to reach the places of violence.
Meanwhile, unconfirmed reports said three persons were missing in Sankarakhol area since Thursday evening. It was being apprehended that they had been killed.
During his visit to Phulbani, the Chief Minister attended a meeting to assess the law and order situation. He returned to Bhubaneswar after announcing a development package for the riot-hit district. He did not visit any of the villages where violence took place in the past five days. “Peace and harmony must be maintained at all costs. There should be no leniency towards perpetrators of violence,” Mr. Patnaik said.
The government has termed the violence a conflict between the Kondh tribals and Dalit Panas, as there is long-standing animosity between the Kondhs and Panas in Kandhamal.
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