Balasore, April 15: A group of villagers have ransacked a forest beat house, abducted and assaulted its staff members here.
Yesterday, the mob consisting of villagers of Hathikhulia and its adjacent Rairampur beat up Kuldiha forest range officer Laxman Pradha-n, forester Naresh Singh and watcher Anadi Singh when they raided a villager's house.
The attack is the fallout of an arrest, which the forest department had made four days ago. Hathikholia villager Hauda Singh was arrested after raids and seizure of deer antlers and a country-made gun from his house.
While there had been an anger over the arrest, the preventive measure for Akhand Sikar (annual mass hunting) further aggravated the villagers' wrath.
The mob first beat up forester Singh and confined him in the village. When range officer Pradhan, along with other staff members, went to rescue him, they too were beaten up and confined by the enraged villagers. However, all of them were rescued by 10pm.
At least six forest personnel, including the range officer, suffered injuries in the attack. The mob even snatched Pradhan's service revolver and cellphone. He is admitted to sub-divisional hospital at Nilgiri.
Fearing police action, the villagers fled the village. Though the forest department lodged a police complaint naming eight persons, including the Shaymsundarpur gram panchayat sarpanch Purosottam Sethi, no arrest has yet been made till filing of the report.
Balasore divisional forest officer Harsh Bardhan Udgata said: "An FIR has been lodged in this connection. The revolver of the Kudiha range officer is still missing. There is a strong anguish among the staff members. The police should arrest the culprits as soon as possible."
"Sethi was the key accused as he had instigated the tribal villagers for violent attack against us," he said.
Nilgiri sub-divisional police officer S.R. Mahapatra said: "A case has been registered against the accused. But, all the male members have fled the village." A few criminals also set the forest on fire after they did not find scope to enter the sanctuary during Akhand Sikar. "About 150 hectares of forest area has been affected," said Udgata.