Nabarangpur, Sept 13 (Odisha.in) Zilla Parisad member and leader of Raighar Dalit Samaja, Jagabandhu Majhi miraculously escaped from a bomb attack near Sarguli village in Raighar block on Tuesday evening. The incident occurred while Majhi on his way to Salebhata village from Sarguli.
Sources said, Majhi was traveling in his jeep along with three others and near a culvert three unknown persons tried to over take the vehicle after firing at the jeep and hurling a number of hand bombs. They then immediately vanished away from the spot.
Although the jeep was damaged by the attack but Majhi and other persons in the vehicle could save their lives. After hearing the incident his supporters and police rushed to the spot and brought him with escort to Umerkote. The police also seized 4 unexploded hand bombs from the spot.
Majhi was an unknown person until the tribal unrest during 2001 in the tribal dominated Raighar block of the district. Majhi was the key person behind the tribal agitations which was launched against the Bengali settlers.
The communal agitations which remain in the headlines though out the year taken 8 lives including four persons killed in police firing. Since then Majhi was a most wanted and remained underground for a long period to avoid his detention under NSA.
After the Zilla Parisad election in 2002 in which the Dalit Samja captured 3 seats out of the 4 in the Raighar block Majhi came closure to the higher ups of Biju Janata Dal by extending support to the party’s ZP presidential candidate.
Majhi’s rise in Umerkote assembly segment brought realignment of political situation in the last assembly election. He as an independent candidate gave a very tough fight to the Bharatiya Janata Party and pushed the dominating congress party to third position.
The rise Majhi and continued support base of his political forces in the Umerkote segment has become a severe headache for the BJP which has been opposing him at every platform. And in the last panchayat elections Majhi along with his two supporters were elected to Zilla Parisad and played a deciding role during the president election.
The incident has become a main issue of discussion among the people of the area as a new political alignment is going to take place soon.
Sangrami Parisad chief and well known political leader Jayadeva Parida and the Dalit Samaja leader Majhi along with their followers are scheduled to join in BJD for which a mass gathering is being planned at Umerkote next week in which Chief Minister Nabeen Patnaik and Rajya Sabha MP Pyari Mohapatra will remain present.
While police investigation is going on the attack it has given a political colour. The BJP and Congress party said it to be a well enacted drama; others started blaming the opponent of Majhi.
Odisha.in