A doctor who moved to Odisha to improve healthcare access for tribal communities and a Dalit activist have been arrested in connection with a clash between villagers and police during protests against bauxite mining in the state, prompting the Congress and civil society groups to allege a wider crackdown on communities opposing mining projects.
Randall Sequeira, 39, and activist Laxman Naik were arrested on the night of October 16 in connection with the April clash in Kantamal village in Rayagada district. Both face serious criminal charges, including attempt to murder and rioting, and have also been booked under the Arms Act, a senior police officer told PTI.
The police have rejected allegations that the arrests were intended to suppress anti-mining protests, claiming that the two activists instigated tribal residents to attack security personnel during the confrontation.
The arrests have drawn criticism from Congress leaders and civil society organisations, which maintain that the activists were supporting tribal and Dalit communities resisting mining projects and defending their rights over land and natural resources.
Police link arrests to April clash
The case relates to a confrontation on April 7, when a pre-dawn police raid in Kantamal village triggered a clash amid opposition to the construction of an approach road to the Sijimali bauxite reserve.
Villagers alleged that police entered the village to detain people opposing the road project. They also alleged that electricity to the village was disconnected before the raid and that officers broke down doors to enter homes. The police, however, said they had gone to arrest a person against whom a non-bailable warrant had been issued.
Nearly 58 people, including police personnel, sustained injuries in the clash, while 23 activists and local residents were arrested.
According to reports, Sequeira and Naik were not named in the initial first information report (FIR), but the police claimed their involvement emerged during the subsequent investigation.
South Western Range Deputy Inspector General Akhileshvar Singh rejected allegations of repression, saying the arrests were made because of the activists' alleged roles in instigating tribal residents against the state government.
"The arrested persons were not innocent. Dr Randall Sequeira was not providing medical services to the people but was engaged in instigating tribals against the state government. Naik was also misleading people. Why do police arrest any innocent person, especially a doctor?" Singh told PTI.
The Indian Express also reported that Singh said several serious cases were pending against Sequeira and that two tribal women had complained that he had instigated them.
Who is Randall Sequeira?
Originally from Mangaluru in Karnataka, Sequeira grew up in Mumbai, where he completed his schooling. He studied medicine at St John's Medical College in Bengaluru before pursuing an MD in internal medicine at Sawai Man Singh Medical College and Hospital in Rajasthan, according to his LinkedIn profile.
In 2017, he moved to Kalahandi district in Odisha to work with non-governmental organisations operating in tribal areas. After working with NGOs for a few years, he began practising independently, travelling to remote villages to treat tribal communities and understand their living conditions.
His work extended beyond treating illnesses such as malaria and tuberculosis. He also sought to understand the social, economic and environmental conditions affecting the health and livelihoods of people living in the region.
Alongside his medical work, Sequeira became involved in protests against bauxite mining. In September 2023, Kashipur police in Rayagada made a general diary entry concerning the circulation of pamphlets, maps and anti-mining material in villages around the Sijimali hills, a proposed mining site.
In another development, the Orissa High Court quashed an exclusion order issued under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita in July 2025. The order had barred Sequeira from entering Rayagada district.
Who is Laxman Naik?
Naik is a prominent Dalit activist associated with the Ma Mati Mali Surakhya Manch and the Samajwadi Jan Parishad, according to PTI.
The Ma Mati Mali Surakhya Manch has been associated with opposition to mining projects in the region. The movement has sought to protect the land, forests, water sources and livelihoods of communities affected by mining and industrialisation.
The Concerned Citizens Committee, Odisha, said both Sequeira and Naik supported people's movements against the distress caused by mining and industrial development and worked to protect human habitats.
Condemning their arrests, the organisation alleged that the action was intended to derail the tribal community's struggle for justice and its rights over natural resources, described by activists as 'Jal, Jangal and Jameen', or water, forests and land.
The committee called for solidarity with the affected communities and those opposing mining projects in the region.
Congress alleges wider campaign against tribal communities
Congress general secretary for communications Jairam Ramesh accused the BJP-led government in Odisha of targeting Sequeira and Naik because of their support for protests by tribal and Dalit communities against bauxite mining.
"They have been supporting protests by Dalit and tribal communities against Bauxite mining projects. This is part of a larger campaign of repression in Odisha which has seen 43 police cases and over a 100 people jailed in three years," Ramesh alleged.
He said Congress MP from Koraput Saptagiri Ulaka and the Odisha Congress were extending support to the arrested activists.
Ramesh also alleged that mining projects in Sijimali, Kutrumali and Niyamgiri were being pushed through in violation of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, and the Forest Rights Act, 2006, despite the areas falling under the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution.
He further claimed that there were serious allegations of forged gram sabha consent for the Sijimali project and criticised the Centre's environmental clearance for the proposed mining activity.
"This is the double engine model at work denying tribal communities their rights," Ramesh said.
The Congress's allegations form part of a broader dispute over the proposed mining projects and the extent to which local communities have been consulted over activities affecting their land and natural resources.
Mining projects and tribal rights at the centre of dispute
The Sijimali bauxite reserve has become a focal point of opposition to mining in southern Odisha, with protests centred on concerns about land, forests, water resources and the impact of industrial activity on local communities.
The proposed projects in Sijimali and Kutrumali have faced resistance from residents and activists who argue that the rights of communities living in these areas must be protected. The Fifth Schedule provides a framework for the administration of Scheduled Areas, while the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act and the Forest Rights Act provide safeguards relating to tribal self-governance and forest rights.
The police maintain that Sequeira and Naik were arrested because of their alleged involvement in the April violence, while the activists' supporters contend that the arrests are linked to their opposition to mining.
The case has consequently become part of a wider dispute over law enforcement, the rights of tribal and Dalit communities, and the future of bauxite mining in Odisha.