Damodar Rout. Telegraph picture

Paradip, July 17: A local court has issued summons directing former minister and BJD legislator Damodar Rout to appear before it on July 30 in connection with an anti-Dalit remark case.

A year after Rout had allegedly made casteist remarks against Jagatsinghpur MP Bibhu Prasad Tarai, MLA Bishnu Charan Das and additional district magistrate Upendra Nath Mallick, the local police had filed a chargesheet against him last week.

In April, the former agriculture minister, Rout, had surrendered in a local court and secured bail in the case.

Rout is facing trial in connection with the case registered against him under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act.

“The judicial magistrate first class at Kujang has issued directions to Rout to make a personal appearance before the court on July 30. Rout has earlier stated the court he did not make any disparaging anti-Dalit remark in his public speech,” said Sachidananda Biswal, the former minister’s counsel.

Rout had allegedly made the disparaging comments against dalits insinuating at the MP, MLA and the officer during the course of a public meeting at Kujang on August 18 last year.

The alleged remark made by Rout, when he was the agriculture minister, had snowballed into a controversy following which he was dropped from the ministry.

The National Commission for Scheduled Castes had taken up the case and had expressed strong displeasure over the delay on part of police in filing the chargesheet.

Last week, Jagatsinghpur MLA Bishnu Charan Das and superintendent of police S. Devidatta Singh had appeared before the commission in New Delhi. While Das reiterated the disparaging comments made on Dalits, SP Singh apprised the commission of the progress of the case.

A criminal case was registered against Rout under the Scheduled castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989, following complaints by Manoj Bhoi and Rabi Dalei.