India

Odisha Deploys Security Forces as Andhra Pradesh Plans Polls in Disputed Kotia Villages

By Sujit Bisoyi

Tension flared in the disputed Kotia panchayat a day before local body elections scheduled by Andhra Pradesh, with the Odisha government placing the area under strict surveillance. Odisha revenue minister said the state has prepared a plan to prevent Andhra Pradesh officials from entering the region. The day before, police and administrative staff from both states engaged in a heated exchange. A senior administrative officer claimed that an Andhra Pradesh campaign vehicle and a police vehicle tried to force entry and remove barricades set up by Odisha. Kotia consists of 28 villages with a population of nearly 5,000. Since the 1960s, both Odisha and Andhra Pradesh have claimed jurisdiction over 21 of these villages. The Odisha government alleges that Andhra Pradesh’s move violates a 2006 Supreme Court order directing both states to maintain the status quo in the region. “Andhra Pradesh officials are trying to enter the disputed region to conduct polls, violating the Supreme Court order. They are also trying to lure voters there. We have prepared a plan to prevent them. Besides officials, leaders from all parties as well as civil society members are with us,” said Pujari. Andhra Pradesh has scheduled Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituencies (MPTC) and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituencies (ZPTC) polls in Kotia on Thursday. Koraput district administration officials said as many as 15 platoons (about 400–500 personnel) have been deployed in the Kotia region and barricades have been set up in different places to prevent entry of Andhra Pradesh officials. Special security arrangements have been made in Neridibalsa, Phagun Sineri, Phatu Sineri and other villages close to the Andhra Pradesh border. The move came a day after police and administrative staff from Odisha and Andhra Pradesh engaged in a heated exchange of words at the disputed region while asserting their jurisdictional claims over Kotia. The Koraput district administration has issued prohibitory orders in 21 villages in Kotia. Officials from both states also held discussions at Kotia. The Odisha administration has deputed 16 magistrates in the region to monitor the situation and senior officials, including Koraput sub‑collector Fabi Rashid, to camp there. Rashid said, “When we opposed entry of a campaign vehicle in Kotia on Tuesday, a police vehicle from Andhra Pradesh came and forcibly tried to enter. When we told them that Kotia is under Koraput administration and the Supreme Court has ordered status quo in the region, they were not willing to listen. They tried to forcibly enter and to remove the barricades which led to tensions.” She added that the Andhra Pradesh administration cannot set up any polling station for MPTC and ZPTC polls in Kotia. Leaders of all political parties appear to agree on the issue, even as they accuse each other of not doing enough to resolve it. Last week, the Odisha government moved the Supreme Court, seeking a contempt petition against Andhra Pradesh over its notification to hold local body polls. Odisha’s Leader of the Opposition Naveen Patnaik urged Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to take up the matter with the Union government and the government of Andhra Pradesh at the highest level, citing the recent development and tension in the region. “Since both Odisha and Andhra Pradesh are governed by parties belonging to the NDA, led by the BJP, urgent steps must be taken to protect Odisha’s territorial integrity, as promised in the BJP’s 2024 election manifesto,” the Biju Janata Dal president wrote in a letter – his second in the past week. Patnaik said it is the moral responsibility of the Odisha CM to ensure that the state’s legitimate interests are firmly protected and the situation on the ground is not allowed to escalate any further. “I hope the BJP leadership will honour its commitment to the people of Odisha and walk the talk on the Kotia issue, as guaranteed in its 2024 election manifesto,” he added.