Demanding house for self, Odisha man keeps school under siege for 5 days

Rourkela (Odisha): Demanding a house and other property for himself from the government, a man in Odisha’s Sundargarh district has kept a school under siege for five days and injured three people with arrows and stones for coming close to him, an officer said.

The authorities needed 60 personnel of the police, fire brigade and district voluntary force, besides a drone camera and an iron mesh to capture him on Wednesday evening.

The tribal man, a resident of Phuljhar village, was arrested and taken to the local police station.

He used his bow and arrow and a slingshot to injure two policemen and the school headmaster, respectively, since Saturday afternoon when he virtually took over the three-storied building.

The school was not functioning from Monday and students were attending classes in a nearby institute.

With a bow and arrows, a slingshot and stones, Dhani Munda has been staying on the terrace of the Badjal Government Primary School under the jurisdiction of Mahulpada police station.

He dropped a piece of paper writing his demands on it when the police through public address system asked him what he wanted to leave the school building.

Munda demanded a residential building with a boundary wall and garden for him, besides property worth Rs 100 crore in the village, the officer said.

During his stay on the terrace, he shouted “This is my house” several times.

Munda had barged into the school on Saturday after an altercation with the headmaster. Following the argument, he hit the headmaster with a stone using his slingshot, drove him out and locked the school building from inside, police said.

When a group of local youths tried to climb the roof, he threatened them.

After the police were informed, inspector in charge of Mahulpada police station, Suresh Chandra Pradhan, reached the spot with his team.

Munda hit Pradhan on a palm with an arrow when he tried to climb the roof using a ladder. He needed hospitalisation. Another police officer was also injured by Munda.

Sub-Divisional Police Officer of Bonai, Swaraj Devta, then reached the spot along with fire brigade personnel.

Rourkela SP Brijesh Ray said a drone camera was used to pinpoint his location on the roof.

Finally, a section of the policemen guarding the school building kept him occupied on one side of the roof, fire brigade and district voluntary force personnel reached there from another side.

They used an iron mesh which can stop arrows and stones to capture the man, police said.

For the past five days, Munda has been having the ration stored for the students.