The Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Thursday met relatives of the seven villagers brutally killed by the armed supporters of "Pathalgarhi" movement in West Singhbhum district, and assured them all possible assistance from the state government.
Soren, who has directed to set up a special investigation team to get to the bottom of the incident soon after the bodies were recovered from a forest near Burugulikera village, over 175 km from capital Ranchi,on Wednesday, called upon the villagers not to take the law in their hands.
"The guilty will be punished. Those who tried to create fear have failed. The district administration has been asked to give fool-proof security to the villagers," the chief minister told reporters after meeting the villagers during his two-hour stay there.
Pathalgarhi is a name given to a tribal protest which seeks autonomy for village sabhas (Gram sabhas).The proponents of Pathalgarhi want no laws of the land be applicable on the tribal people in the area.They reject government rights over their forests and rivers.
As part of the movement, Pathalgarhis erect a stone plaque or signboard outside the village/area, declaring it as sovereign territory and prohibiting entry of the outsiders.
The movement, prevalent across four districts of Khunti, Gumla, Simdega and West Singhbhum, all of them Maoist-infested areas, had hit the national headlines in the middle of 2019.
On June 19, five NGO workers branded as "dikus" (outsiders) were allegedly abducted and gangraped by armed men associated with the Pathalgarhi movement. They were performing a street play at a school in Khunti district when they were targeted.
On June 26, another group of armed Pathalgarhis had abducted three security personnel posted at the former BJP MP Karia Munda's home in Khunti. They were released later
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