Bhubaneswar, Oct. 12: The dawn-to-dusk Kandhamal strike called by the Nikhil Utkal Kui Samaj, an organisation of the Kui tribals, to protest against the arrest of their leader, Lambodar Kanhar, today hit life in the tribal-dominated district.

However, the shutdown was peaceful, much to the relief of the district administration, which had made heavy police deployment to ward off possible violence.

Kanhar, who was arrested yesterday for allegedly leading a mob attack on candidates for the post of shiksha sahayak (para teachers) from outside Kandhamal, has been remanded to 14-day judicial custody after a local court at Phulbani rejected his bail plea. Three cases have been registered against Kanhar and his supporters at Phulbani town police station.

The strike affected life in areas such as G. Udayagiri, Baliguda and Phulbani with the Kui Samaj activists disrupting vehicular movement on arterial roads by burning tyres and forcing educational institutions and business establishments to down shutter.

No vehicles plied on the Phulbani-Berhampur road and banks were forced to suspend operations. However, government offices and courts remained open.

Kandhamal additional superintendent of police G.C. Mallik said the strike was peaceful. Phulbani MLA Debendra Kanhar, who is a Kui leader and a relative of Kanhar, opposed the shutdown. “I don’t believe in violence and bandhs. Such issues can be resolved in a peaceful way,” he said.

The Kui Samaj Co-ordination Committee, led by Kanhar, has been spearheading a movement against non-tribals, who have managed government jobs by allegedly producing fake certificates showing them as tribals. Earlier, the committee had urged the Odisha government several times to take action against such fraudsters, who were encroaching upon the rights of local tribals.