At least eleven people were injured, six of them critically, after a violent clash erupted between two rival groups in Odisha’s Jajpur district, police said on Thursday.
The bloody confrontation took place late Wednesday night at Bulakipur village, under the Jajpur Sadar police station limits of the district. The root of the violence was a bitter community dispute over the exact location for constructing a ‘Bhagabata Tungi’—a traditional small cottage where villagers typically gather after their daily labour to discuss religion, scriptures, and local culture.
The injured people are currently undergoing medical treatment at various regional hospitals, according to official sources.
The project had originally been greenlit after the state Culture Department sanctioned official funds to build the cultural hub in the village. However, local friction quickly developed over the administrative selection of the site for the centre, a police officer explained.
While one group of residents wanted the ‘Bhagabahat Tungi’ to be constructed in the centre of the village, another group opposed that site.
The underlying tension exploded into open violence on Wednesday night when members of one group actively attempted to lay down the foundation of the ‘Bhagabata Tungi’. The opposing faction rushed to the spot to halt the work, sparking a heated argument.
The verbal altercation rapidly spiralled out of control into a brutal, full-blown battle. The clashing groups attacked each other using crude bombs and sharp weapons, leading to severe injuries for 11 villagers, with six currently fighting for their lives, the police officer stated.
Those injured in the clash were rushed to the local hospital for treatment, and later six of them were shifted to the district headquarters hospital after their condition deteriorated, he said.
Local police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.
Jajpur Town Sub-divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Prasant Kumar Majhi said that two platoons of police personnel have been deployed to the village to maintain law and order.
Furthermore, senior police officials have visited the spot to oversee stabilisation efforts and guarantee that no retaliatory violence breaks out between the factions, Majhi added.
As of Thursday, two separate cross-complaints have been formally registered with the police regarding the clash.
While an official investigation into the rioting and violence has been launched, no arrests have been made so far, the SDPO concluded.
