Demanding immediate withdrawal of false cases registered against 23 villagers from village Narra under Bagbahara tehsil in Mahasamund district coming under Komakhan police station and to stop trading of illicit liquor from the area coming under the said police station, the Bharatiya Janata Party has called for strict action against concerned police officials for registering false cases and beating villagers mercilessly for raising the issue of illicit liquor sale. The BJP has also submitted a memorandum to Governor Anusuiya Uikey in this direction seeking intervention in providing justice to the villagers. Addressing mediapersons at a press conference, senior BJP leader and MLA Shivratan Sharma who was accompanied by BJP MP from Mahasamund Chunnilal Sahu, BJP Mahasamund District In charge Jagannath Panigrahi and Preetam Diwan former Khallari MLA, alleged that the ruling Congress Government which had come to power in 2018 promising complete liquor prohibition in State, but the situation today after over two years in Government, Chhattisgarh is gradually converting into ‘Uddta Chhattisgarh’.

 

He alleged that the sale of illicit liquor is going on unabated in State under patronage from the State Government. Sharma while addressing media persons said, one person viz Omkar Thakur carries out illicit liquor trade in village Narra under Komakhan PS in Mahasamund district, since a long time.

 

The villagers are deadly against the illicit liquor trade and a prominent villager Kashi Yadav complained at police control room (112) that the said person is selling illicit liquor in the village. Instead of carrying out punitive action against the person involved in illicit liquor trade, the accused Omkar Thakur and his hoodlums as well as the local police personnel also threatened the complainant with dire consequences, alleged Sharma. Talking about an incident which had taken place on September 30, 2020, when hoodlums of Omkar Thakur alleged entered the residence of Kashi Yadav and started beating his family members and breaking furniture and belongings in the house, again Kashi Yadav had registered complaint at 112 as well as to Komakhan SHO. Sharma alleged that the Komakhan PS which is situated just 7 Kms from the village, for over an hour no police personnel came to his house, in the mean time the hoodlums continued with the mayhem. The police personnel reached there after one hour, but they allegedly staged another drama at the spot, alleged Sharma. When the police vehicle reached Kashi Yadav’s house, Sharma alleged that as a pre-fixed plan the vehicle was attacked by hoodlums of Omkar Thakur but the police allegedly registered a false case of sabotage and attack on police vehicles against the villagers.

 

Thereafter, the villagers complained to SDO (P) of the area and Mahasamund SP. On February 5, 2021, when some villagers including Preetam Patel, Sanjay Patel, Jitendra Beldar, etc had gone to register their statements against complaints made to the Mahasamund SP, these villagers were arrested under Non-bailable offence. Sharma said when the villagers came to know about their arrest, the villagers held a meeting in the village wherein, it was decided that to protest against the arrest of these villagers, each and every villager of village Narra will go to Khomakhan police station demanding their mass arrest. When the villagers took out a procession leading to Komakhan PS for getting arrested, in-between, the police attacked these villagers through lathi-charge and shot tear-gas shells. The villagers were beaten so mercilessly that many of them received severe injuries including fracture. Women were also not spared, they were attacked. Later in the police station a woman’s sari was torn and later she was given a new sari, alleged Sharma.