Severed head of tribal woman, whose murder sparked violence, found in Odisha river

This comes days after clashes were reported between the tribal Rakhelguda village and MV-26 village, where Bengali settlers live, over the headless body found in a river. The body was identified as belonging to a woman who had been reported missing last week.

The clashes led to prohibitory orders and an internet shutdown earlier this week. Although the situation is now reportedly under control, the Malkangiri district administration has extended the internet shutdown until 12 pm Thursday, while heavy police deployment continues in both villages.

“After post-mortem, the severed head has been handed over to the family and cremation was conducted. The situation is peaceful,” Malkangiri district collector Somesh Upadhyay told The Indian Express. Asked about the continued police deployment, he said: “We need deployment for sometimes to build confidence as people have started moving to their homes”.

Significantly, prohibitory orders were issued after thousands of residents of Rakhelguda village marched on MV-26 and set fire to 100 houses. The vandalism and arson continued on Monday in the presence of police.

The Bengali settlers have been living in MV-26 for decades after fleeing the violence in East Pakistan, now Bangladesh.

Although the woman’s family had initially refused to conduct a funeral for the body, they relented after the district administration’s intervention.

The administration also convened a ‘peace meeting’ between the two villages, where the two parties “agreed to restore peace”, said the district collector.

“We have kept a close watch on elements trying to create mischief. We have also formed a committee to assess the damage in the affected village and submit a report. They will be compensated according to the relief code,” the district collector said, adding that a shelter home had been set up to house those who lost their homes in the recent violence.