"HRD Alert - India – Urgent Appeal for Action – Odisha: Threat, intimidation, assault and fabricated charges against HRDs Mr. Debendra Swain, Mr. Basanta Gochayat, Mr. Chuguna Jena and other HRDs for peaceful protests against Jindal Steel Plant", 9 December 2021

[...] Mr. Debendra Swain, Mr. Basanta Gochayat, Mr. Chuguna Jena are environmental activists residing in the Dhinkia panchayat area under Erasama block in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district. They were earlier part of a movement opposing the establishment of a steel plant and port by the South Korean steel giant POSCO in the coastal district, which was scrapped in 2017. Mr. Swain and others have also been opposing efforts by Jindal Steel Works (JSW) to set up a mega project at the same site. They have conducted numerous public meetings, rallies and demonstrations to press on their demands and opposed the project in public hearings conducted by the administration...

Mr. Swain, Mr. Gochayat, Mr. Jena and other HRDs are being implicated in obviously false cases in reprisal for their participation in the movement opposing the JSW project. Prima facie it appears that the police misused the powers and raided the house of Mr. Swain, at 3 am in the night. But when they failed to arrest the HRD due to the presence and opposition of other villagers, they registered three fabricated cases against Mr. Swain and other HRDs within a span of next four hours. These arbitrary actions on the part of police officials amount to a gross abuse of the HRDs’ fundamental right to life and personal liberty...