One More Held for Jharkhand Massacre, 16 Arrested So Far

One more person was arrested for the killing of seven people by alleged supporters of the ‘Pathalgarhi’ movement.

Image for representational purpose only

(Photo: The Quint)

One more person was arrested for the killing of seven people by alleged supporters of 'Pathalgarhi', a self-rule movement, in Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district last week, taking the number of arrests to 16, police said on Tuesday, 28 January.

Twenty seven-year-old Martin Logma was arrested on Monday, 27 January and produced before a court in Chakradharpur which remanded him in judicial custody for 14 days, an official release said.

The other 15 accused, aged between 19 and 60 years, were arrested on Sunday and charged with murder and rioting, among others, it said.

They were produced before the court of the sub-divisional judicial magistrate, Chakradharpur, on Monday, 27 January, and were also remanded in judicial custody.

The Pathalgarhi movement is a name given to a tribal protest for autonomy to Gramsabha (village council). Its proponents want no laws of the land be applicable to the tribal people in the area and refuse to accept government's rights over forests and rivers.

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Its supporters carve their diktat on rocks in their areas of influence. The name 'Pathalgarhi' is derived from the practice of carving the edicts of the leaders of the movement on large stones called 'pathal' in local language, while garhi means carving.

Supporters of the movement had allegedly kidnapped seven villagers of Burugulikera in Guddi block on 21 January and killed them for opposing their stir. Their mutilated bodies were recovered from a forest around 4 kilometers from the village the next day.

A section of the tribal of the region are opposed to the movement as it bars them from accepting benefits of government schemes.

The killings that took place days after the JMM- Congress-RJD coalition government assumed power in the state on 29 December, triggered widespread outrage and Chief Minister Hemant Soren ordered an investigation by a special investigation team.