Days after the Dongaria Kondhs of Serkapadi village unanimously rejected bauxite mining in the Niyamgiri Hills, Lanjigarh Vikash Parishad (LVP), an organisation supporting the Vedanta refinery project has questioned the village council meeting.
"We wanted the people to exercise their judgement without fear and prejudice and, therefore, did not campaign in the villages. However, we were shocked to note hundreds of people belonging to NGOs (non-governmental organisations) and the Niyamgiri Suraksha Samiti (NSS) surrounding the palli sabha spot. Prima facie, this appears to be against the spirit of the Supreme Court judgment, as in this case, the hearing neither becomes fair nor free from fear," said Shridhar Pesnia, president of LVP.
On July 18, when 36 registered voters of Serkapadi village turned up at the gram sabha, the spot was surrounded by scores of supporters of Amnesty International and NSS, a committee formed to safeguard the rights of the tribals. Barricades were erected and police personnel were deployed to ensure security.
Officials of the two joint venture partners of the mining project - state-controlled Odisha Mining Corporation and Vedanta Aluminium - were absent at the gram sabha. LVP officials, too, chose to stay away from the decisive village council meeting, the proceedings of which were overseen by Rayagada district judge Sarat Chandra Mishra.
