Protestors block Chaibasa-Hata road blocked for hours
Mail News Service
Seraikela, Dec 8: Dharma Murmu, 48, JMM leader and chairman of the local block level Twenty Point Committee, died in a road accident on the Hata-Chaibasa main road (NH220) on Thursday. He was the representative of state minister Champai Soren in Rajnagar.
Sources said the mishap occurred around 9 am near Rajnagar Block Chowk. Murmu, who rode a bike, was knocked down by a Chaibasa-bound trailer truck at the main road. Murmu sustained critical injuries after his head banged against the truck. He succumbed at the scene. The truck driver fled the scene after leaving the vehicle on the spot.
Police removed Murmu’s body from the scene and took it to the police station instead of sending it to the hospital. Apprehending mob fury, the cops sent the body to Seraikela for postmortem examination. Irked over this, Murmu’s relatives and well-wishers gheraoed the police station and demanded that the body be handed over to the aggrieved family. The protestors also blocked the Chaibasa-Hata main road for several hours demanding compensation and a government job for the next of kin of the deceased.
SDO Ram Krishna Kumar and other administration officials spoke to protestors and assured to fulfill their demands as per government norms. Finally, the road blockade was cleared around 3 pm.