BJP MLA jailed for Kandhamal riots

BERHAMPUR: In a major embarrassment to the BJP, a party legislator was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment by a fast track court for murder during the anti-Christian riots in Kandhamal district of Orissa in 2008.

G Udayagiri MLA Manoj Pradhan (30), along with his accomplice, Prafulla Mallick, was convicted of a murdering Parikhit Digal, a Christian resident of Barepanga village under the Raikia police station on August 27, 2008. Fast track court-I judge Sovan Das also fined Pradhan and Mallick Rs 5,000 each.

Sectarian clashes had erupted in Kandhamal shortly after the killing of senior VHP leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati at his Jalespeta ashram on August 23, 2008. Around 40 people were killed and many houses damaged in the spiral of violence that followed.

Security was tightened in Phulbani and G Udyagiri towns in Kandhamal district after the judgment was pronounced.

Pradhan, a first-time MLA, was sentenced under Section 326 (making severe injury to a person, which caused his death) and Section 148 (unlawful assembly).

The BJP MLA said he would appeal against the verdict. "I will challenge the verdict in a higher court," he said, before being taken to Phulbani jail. "The people of my constituency know what I am. I have full faith in the judiciary."

Five riot-related cases, including three murders, are also pending against Pradhan. Earlier, he had been acquitted in five other cases.

Despite his role in the riots, Pradhan was elected from the G Udayagiri constituency in the 2009 Assembly elections which he fought from behind bars. He defeated Congress candidate Ajayanti Pradhan by over 30,000 votes.

Orissa plans ATDCs in backward dists

Bhubaneswar: The Orissa government is planning to set up mobile apparel training and design centre (ATDC) in backward districts like Kandhamal, Koraput to improve the employbility skill of the people.
"We are now having an ATDC hub in Bhubaneswar and satellite centres in Berhampur, Rourkela, Cuttack, Baripada and Sambalpur," said the state textile and handloom minister, Anjali Behera. She said the mobile centres will serve the poor people living in interior parts of the state.The minister said ATDCs have trained as many as 1000 candidates and most of them have been employed in garment industire in Mumbai, Surat, Silvassa, Bangalore, Delhi, Tirupur. She said about 530 trainess, mostly riot victims and surrendered Maoists from Kandhamal, have been employed after being passed out from the ATDCs. State handloom secretary Arati Ahuja said the ATDCs are getting offer letters from big players like Arvind, Shahai, Poppys, Knitware, Unisource Trend, Victus, Sava.