Jharkhand BJP Demands CBI Probe into Surya Hansda Encounter, Raises Farmers’ Land Issue

Ranchi: A Jharkhand BJP delegation led by state president Babulal Marandi met Governor Santosh Kumar Gangwar on Friday, seeking a CBI investigation into the alleged fake encounter of tribal activist Surya Hansda in Godda.

In its memorandum, the BJP claimed that Hansda, a socio-political activist, was picked up from his Deoghar residence on August 10 but was later shown by the police as having been killed in an encounter in Mahagama, Godda, on August 11. The party emphasized that Hansda, though facing 24 cases, had been acquitted in 14 and was never declared a criminal by any court. His family maintained that he was unwell, undergoing treatment, and was neither produced before a magistrate nor given medical examination after his detention.

The BJP alleged that Hansda’s death was linked to his opposition to illegal mining and demanded a CBI probe, protection for his family and their lawyer, and justice in the case.

The delegation also raised concerns over land acquisition for the proposed RIMS-II hospital in Nagdi, Ranchi. It alleged that fertile farmland of Raiyat farmers was seized without consent or fair compensation, violating laws. The party further condemned the use of police force — lathi charge and tear gas — against farmers protesting on August 24, calling it an “assault on tribal identity and farmers’ rights.”

While clarifying that it supports the medical college project, the BJP urged that it be built on barren or alternative land instead of prime farmland and demanded withdrawal of police cases against the protesting farmers.

The delegation included senior BJP leaders, including MP Aditya Prasad Sahu and MLAs C.P. Singh and Naveen Jaiswal.

With inputs from IANS