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Tensions have escalated in Odisha's political circles as Chameli Ojha, the woman Sarpanch of Tikhiri Gram Panchayat in Mahakalapada block, continued her indefinite hunger strike outside the State Legislative Assembly for the eighth consecutive day on Tuesday.
Ojha is demanding immediate and stringent disciplinary action against the Mahakalapada Block Development Officer (BDO) and the local Police Inspector-in-Charge (IIC). The former Sarpanch, who resigned from the BJP on Monday, has alleged high-level political interference, police excesses, and threats to her life. Speaking to ANI during the protest, Ojha accused the local Mahakalapada MLA of turning against her after the elections. She further alleged that she was beaten up by police on the MLA's instructions, which led to her hospitalisation. "I have done a lot of work for the BJP party, for the Mahakalpada MLA and mobilised votes for him. Once he secured the votes, he started demanding favours from me...when I opposed this and refused to comply, he used the BDO and IIC officers against me to have false FIRs registered in my name. He even had me beaten up by the police, resulting in my hospitalisation...he pressured the BDO to shut down my office," Ojha said. According to Ojha, when she went to the Block office to seek clarity on the closure, she was attacked. Ojha also alleged custodial torture. "The MLA sent his goons to attack my dignity and threaten to kill me. They subjected me to severe abuse right in front of the BDO. The police picked me up without an FIR and, while taking me away in the vehicle, subjected me to torture and beatings. While I was being admitted to the hospital, they implicated my brother in a false case," she claimed. The former Sarpanch said her protest is not just for herself but for people across the state facing alleged harassment by officials. "If a female Panchayat Sarpanch is not safe here, one can only imagine the torture men and women must be facing in every household and corner of Odisha at the hands of arbitrary officials," she said. In her statement, Ojha also distanced herself from the ruling party. "I resigned from the BJP yesterday...I have great respect for Narendra Modi, but ever since the BJP came to power in Odisha, I have developed a deep aversion to their system and their way of functioning," she said. (ANI)
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