Odisha MLA threatens mass immolation over problems in his constituency

Bhubaneswar: Congress Jatni MLA Suresh Routray on Monday threatened mass immolation before Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s residence if problems in his constituency were not addressed by January 26, 2020. He threatened self immolation along with 100 villagers.

Routray said he has been demanding restoration of land rights to people of 27 villages in Jatni and shifting of a dumping yard from Daruthenga village on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar.

“I will be the first to set myself on fire and my supporters will follow me. We have planned a mass self immolation in front of the Chief Minister’s residence at 11 pm on January 27,” the 74 year-old Routray said.

He alleged that several people of Daruthenga and the nearby villages had fallen ill due to acute air pollution because of the dumping yard.

The Bhubaneswar Municipality Corporation should shift the dumping yard to an uninhabited place without further delay, he said.

“The government is not paying any heed towards the peoples’ problem even though I have raised the matter several times in the Assembly,” Routray said adding that air pollution is due to the dumping yard.

He claimed that the animals at the Nandankanan Zoo here have died due to the pollution.

The Congress MLA also asked the Odisha government to immediately return private land to the people of 27 villages of Jatni block. These lands were in the name of villagers. The government suddenly changed their ownership and made the records in the name of Lord Jagannath, he said.

The people are not able to use their land as the government has changed its ownership.

Official sources said that the government had changed the ownership because the villagers were illegally in possession of these lands since a long time.

(PTI)