Police trying to implicate us in attack on Soni Sori, claim relatives

The tribal activist’s nephew and journalist Lingaram Kodopi claims the police harassing were him

Tribal activist and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Soni Sori’s relatives have alleged that they are being “harassed and intimidated” by Bastar police in the name of investigating the case of an >attack on her.

Her nephew Lingaram Kodopi went on to allege that the police were also trying to “implicate” her relatives in the case.

“We fear that the police might implicate me or Soni Sori’s cousin Ajay Markam in the case of the attack on her. Since the formation of the Special Investigation Team (SIT), I have been asked to come to the police station thrice. Every time they (police) ask us same questions and we are being given disrespectful treatment,” Mr. Kodopi told

The Hindu .

“Ajay Markam was also called to the police station and was asked questions in a threatening language. Ajay Markam was told that he, along with me and Sanjay Pant, were involved in the attack on Soni Sori. The Bastar police are making all kinds of allegations against us,” he claimed.

The nephew of Soni Sori also accused the police of “pressurizing” AAP leader Arvind Gupta to take back the police complaint which he filed against unknown persons after the attack on Soni Sori on February 19.

When tried to reach for his reaction over the allegations levelled by Ms. Sori’s relatives, Bastar range Inspector General of police SRP Kalluri was unavailable for his comments.

This is not the first time when Mr. Kodopi, the only tribal journalist in Bastar, is being targeted by the authorities.

A few years ago, Mr. Kodopi was implicated along with Soni Sori in a case of a corporate house allegedly paying off to the Maoists.

Mr. Kadopi said he was inhumanly tortured in the custody and a petrochemical liquid was put in his rectum for which he is still undergoing treatment.