Peace panel seeks ban on CMAS

Source: The Hindu (http://www.hinduonnet.com/2009/09/17/stories/2009091753250300.htm)
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Peace panel seeks ban on CMAS

Correspondent

Sees need to restrain such outfits from taking out rallies with traditional arms

Role of external forces behind the unrest in Narayanpatna and Bandhugaon suspectedRationale behind administration’s urgency in implementing 3(B) Act questioned

KORAPUT: Members of the peace committee at a meeting held at Semiliguda on Wednesday urged the State government to ban organisations like the Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangh (CMAS) and restraint them from taking out rallies carrying their traditional arms in public.
In a memorandum despatched to the Governor, the members urged the State government to initiate stringent action against those who were behind the violent actions of the CMAS.

Rehabilitation

While apprehending the role of some external forces behind the unrest in Narayanpatna and Bandhugaon, president of Koraput Zilla Parishad Ashok Kumar Pangi said that people who were fomenting trouble would no longer be allowed to carryout their game plan of creating conflict among peace-loving people in the tribal community. As a step forward in bringing peace in the entire region and to check the movement of CMAS from spreading to other places of the district, the members of the peace committee urged the district administration to initiate steps to rehabilitate people who had lost their houses and land in the conflict at Narayanpatna and Bandhugaon blocks recently.
The committee further alleged that the situation turned worse because of lack of timely action by the administration in restraining the CMAS movement.
Instead of putting its foot down on the CMAS, the administration was showing unnecessary urgency in implementing the 3(B) Act for restoration of tribal land in the region, the members alleged. The committee urged the government to go slow on enforcing the Act as people were still unaware of the provisions of the Act in the absence of awareness measures by the administration.

In grip of fear

While thousands of people from the region attended the meeting along with leaders of the locality, people of Dudhari, Putsil, Kamalajhola and Sundhiput of Semiliguda block had to spend the night preceding the meeting in the grip fear. The police had to keep vigil in these villages for the entire night after the villagers reportedly received threat calls allegedly from the CMAS on Tuesday night asking people not to attend the meeting of the peace committee, said Sarat Kumar Sahu, IIC, Semiliguda police station. According to sources, while the meeting of the peace committee was on at Semiliguda, the CMAS-Narayanpatna also conducted a meeting at Kanti in the same block to chalk out its future plan of action.

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