Curfew follows communal clashes in Orissa

KORAPUT (ORISSA): Curfew was imposed in Jeypore town of Orissa's Koraput district on Saturday after five police personnel were injured in mob violence following a clash between members of two communities.

Police fired in the air after a lathicharge and teargas failed to disperse a mob clashing over objectionable graffiti in Vikram Dev College directed against a particular community.

"Curfew was imposed in the town whose streets are still full of angry people throwing stones," Koraput District Superintendent of Police Deepak Kumar said. Five police personnel, including Kumar, were injured in the stone-pelting.

The mob attacked a police station following the clash, causing extensive damage to furniture.

Trouble started over the graffiti with angry youths of the community allegedly launching an attack on girl students from the other community which sparked tension across the town. At least two girls were hurt in the incident.

Demanding immediate arrest of the culprits, hundreds gheraoed the police station and blocked all roads.

Additional forces were being mobilised to restore normalcy in the town where shops and business establishments downed shutters soon after the incident in which a several vehicles were damaged.


Orissa violence continues; more houses torched

BHUBANESWAR: Protesters torched 24 houses in Kandhamal on Saturday as the death toll in the week-long communal violence mounted to 14 with the recovery of two more bodies in the Orissa district.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik was headed for the curfew-bound district to review the situation in the affected areas and the Ashram at Jalespeta where VHP leader Laxamanada Saraswati was gunned down along with three others on August 23 leading to the violence.

Official sources said Patnaik had decided to proceed to Kandhamal by road after inclement weather forced his chopper to return.

Two highly decomposed bodies were recovered from Raikia area near Petapanga village of the district taking the death toll to 14, Suresh Mohapatra, a senior officer monitoring the situation in the district said.

Police said about 24 houses were torched at Katringia, Kanibali, Baghdungri and some other villages under Gochapada panchayat area in the early hours on Saturday. There were, however, no reports of loss of life in the incident.

Police patrolling was intensified and security personnel were sent to remote areas of the tribal district.

With the situation improving in urban areas, curfew was relaxed for 10 hours in most of them barring the sensitive Phulbani town, Baliguda, Tumudibandha, Barkhama, Raikia, G.Udaygiri, Daringbadi and Tikabali.

About 5000 people fearing violence are still hiding in the jungles, though over 10,000 others had returned and were accommodated in seven relief camps set up at G Udayagiri, Raikia, K.Nuagaon, Baliguda, Phiringia, Tikabali and Chakpada, the police said.

So far 137 people have been arrested in the district and 39 cases registered in connection with the violence, a senior police officer said.