HC grants bail to anti-Posco leader

CPI leader and former MLA Narayan Reddy, who was arrested in connection with violence at the Posco project site in December last year, was granted bail by the Orissa High Court on Wednesday. While one person had died, 25 others were injured in the violence.

The violence was the result of a clash between the supporters of a private construction company (Paradip Parivahan), undertaking the road construction work and activists of Posco Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS) at Bose Callis’ point where construction of a 19-km road linking the project area with Paradip town was under progress.

The bail plea of anti-Posco leader Narayan Reddy was rejected in January by the Jagatsinghpur Additional District Session Judge. Earlier, controversial trade union leader Bapi Sarkhel, who was one of the accused in the clash, was granted bail by the Orissa High Court in February.

Meanwhile, the Posco-India chairman and managing director Yong Won Yoon met Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at the state secretariat on Wednesday to take up several issues involving the project, including expediting land acquisition, finalization of the renewal of the memorandum of understanding.