A doctor who moved to Odisha to improve healthcare access for Adivasi communities has reportedly been arrested in connection with a clash during protests against bauxite mining in the state.
The Congress has attacked the BJP over the arrest of Randall Sequeira, 39, and Dalit activist Laxman Naik, alleging a wider crackdown on Adivasi and Dalit communities opposing mining projects.
Randall Sequeira, 39, a doctor who moved to Odisha to improve healthcare access for Adivasi communities, and Dalit activist Laxman Naik were arrested on the night of October 16 in connection with a clash between locals and police in Kantamal village in Rayagada district in April, news agency PTI reported.
Both have been charged with serious criminal offences, including attempt to murder and rioting, and booked under the Arms Act, a senior police officer told PTI.
The police have rejected allegations that the arrests were intended to suppress protests, claiming that the two had instigated tribals to attack security personnel during a protest against mining activities.
Also Read: 2 tribal rights activists held for 'involvement' in clash in Odisha, civil society group condemns
Who is Randall Sequeira?
Originally from Mangaluru, Karnataka, Sequeira grew up in Mumbai, where he completed his schooling. He completed his MBBS at St John’s Medical College in Bengaluru and an MD in internal medicine at Sawai Man Singh Medical College and Hospital in Rajasthan, according to his LinkedIn profile.
In 2017, he moved to Kalahandi to work with NGOs operating in the tribal region. After a few years, he began working independently, travelling to remote villages to treat Adivasi communities and understand their living conditions, The Indian Express reported.
Alongside his healthcare work, Sequeira supported protests against bauxite mining in the region. In September 2023, Kashipur police in Rayagada district made a general diary entry concerning the circulation of pamphlets, maps and anti-mining material in villages around the Sijimali hills, a proposed bauxite mining site, The Indian Express reported.
Who is Laxman Naik?
Naik is a leading Dalit activist associated with the Ma Mati Mali Surakhya Manch and Samajwadi Jan Parishad, PTI reported.
The Concerned Citizens Committee, Odisha, said both activists supported people’s movements against the distress caused by mining and industrialisation and worked to protect human habitats.
The civil society organisation condemned the arrests, alleging that the two were taken into custody with the “sole intention to foil the tribals' fight against injustice and for their rights over natural resources like 'Jal, Jangal & Jameen' (water, forest and land)”.
Congress alleges wider crackdown
Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said Odisha Police picked up Sequeira and Naik on October 16 because they had supported protests by Adivasi and Dalit communities against bauxite mining projects.
"They have been supporting protests by Dalit and Adivasi communities against Bauxite mining projects. This is part of a larger campaign of repression in Odisha which has seen 43 police cases and over a 100 people jailed in three years," he alleged.
Congress MP from Koraput Saptagiri Ulaka and the Odisha Congress are supporting the arrested activists, Ramesh said.
He alleged that mining projects in Sijimali, Kutrumali and Niyamgiri were being pushed through in violation of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, and the Forest Rights Act, 2006, despite the areas falling under the Fifth Schedule.
Ramesh also claimed there were serious allegations of forged gram sabha consent in Sijimali and criticised the Centre’s environmental clearance for the project.
"This is the double engine model at work denying Adivasi communities their rights," he said.
Also Read: 2 tribal rights activists held for 'involvement' in clash in Odisha, civil society group condemns
Police say activists instigated tribals
South Western Range DIG Akhileshvar Singh rejected the allegations of repression. "The arrested persons were not innocent. Dr Randall Sequeira was not providing medical services to the people but was engaged in instigating tribals against the state government. Naik was also misleading people. Why do police arrest any innocent person, especially a doctor?" Singh told PTI.
According to The Indian Express, the clash took place on April 7 after a pre-dawn police raid in Kantamal amid opposition to the construction of an approach road to the Sijimali bauxite reserve.
Villagers alleged that police entered the village to detain people opposing the road project, while police said they had gone to arrest a person against whom a non-bailable warrant had been issued.
Nearly 58 people, including police personnel, sustained injuries in the clash, and 23 activists and local residents were arrested, The Indian Express reported.
(With inputs from PTI)