Quell uprising in garb of pathalgarhi: Amit Shah

RANCHI: BJP national president and Rajya Sabha MP Amit Shah has asked the Raghubar Das government to quell the uprising in certain pockets of the state under the garb of pathalgarhi. He is learnt to have written a letter to the CMO early this month, taking cognizance of which the CMO has asked the police department to take appropriate action.
Shah drew attention of the state government to the incidents of pathalgarhi, after the local gram sabha in Khunti restricted entry of outsiders to their villages and had also forced government schools to shut down. Villagers in Udburu under Murhu block of Khunti district had resorted to putting up of stone tablets in which they claimed to have special powers in areas under Schedule V of the Constitution.

Sources in the CMO said the BJP national president who is also a Rajya Sabha MP and had expressed concern over the developments taking place in the region. The CMO issued directives to the police headquarters following which letters were sent to SPs of four districts Ranchi, Gumla, Khunti and Simdega in connection with Pathalgarhi.

Gumla SP Anshuman Kumar said such missives were a routine instruction to the police department. "Though there has been no incident of pathalgarhi in Gumla, all tribal-dominated districts bordering Khunti have been asked to remain alert so that such uprising, if any, could be nipped in the bud," he said.

A senior IPS officer confirmed the letter from the CMO and said the police department has already taken several steps to quell the uprising being fuelled by some fringe elements. "Community policing is going on and villagers in large number are attending those camps and handful people who were misleading the villagers are now behind bars," he said on the condition of anonymity as he is not allowed to speak to the media. The officer agreed that after fresh directives, the SPs in four districts have been asked to remain cautious.