An eight-member delegation of four Left parties on Monday met Odisha governor Haribabu Kambhampati, alleging police repression of tribals in Rayagada and violations linked to a bauxite mining project in the Sijimali hills.

The delegation — comprising CPI, CPI(M), CPI(ML)-Liberation and All India Forward Bloc — submitted a memorandum seeking the governor’s immediate intervention to safeguard tribal rights and halt what they termed illegal mining and displacement.

The memorandum alleged that work for Vedanta’s project was continuing in violation of the Pesa Act, 1996, and the Forest Rights Act, 2006, in a Fifth Schedule area meant for special protection of tribal communities. It claimed that road construction and mining activities were being carried out without Gram Sabha consent and without full environmental, road and forest clearances.

Referring to the April 7 incident at Kantamal village under Kashipur block, the delegation alleged that police resorted to lathi-charge and tear gas, and snapped electricity before launching a crackdown on villagers. Several tribals were injured and one cow died, it said, adding that protesters had been jailed under “false cases”.

CPI(M) state secretary Suresh Chandra Panigrahi demanded immediate withdrawal of police action, drone surveillance and the prohibitory order under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. He also called for scrapping the mining project and halting road construction.

Panigrahi further demanded a high-level, impartial inquiry into the April 7 incident, withdrawal of all cases against protesters and their unconditional release.

The delegation also sought strict implementation of Pesa Act-1996, FRA-2006 and the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013, in Fifth Schedule areas. It called for cancellation of what it described as a “fraudulent” Gram Sabha and conduct of a fresh, fair one.

“We urged the governor to protect tribals’ rights over jal, jungle and zameen, along with their livelihood and cultural rights as mandated under the Fifth Schedule,” Panigrahi said.

The delegation included CPI state secretary Dr Prashant Kumar Mishra, CPI(ML)-Liberation state secretary Yudhisthir Mahapatra, All India Forward Bloc state general secretary Jyoti Ranjan Mahapatra, former CPI MLA N. Narayan Reddy, CPI(M) state secretariat member Badri Narayan Das, CPI(ML)-Liberation leader Mahendra Parida and Forward Bloc leader Laxmi Dora.