Bhopal: An FIR was lodged against social activist Medha Patkar and 12 others for allegedly misusing the funds that she had received in the name of welfare of the people of Narmada valley, sources in Madhya Pradesh police said on Monday. The FIR was registered in Barwani district of the state on Sunday.
The development came days after Patkar faced massive opposition at Dhinkia village in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district, where a protest was staged against a JSW steel project, as locals asked her to go back while she tried to make her way to the residence of a jailed protester.
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Patkar, along with those accompanying her, had to return from the site of the protest as villagers thwarted her entry into Dhinkia, which is also the epicentre of the anti-displacement movement against South Korean steel major POSCO.
Debendra Swain, an activist who had spearheaded the protest against the JSW steel project over concerns of displacement, was arrested in January amid clashes between the police and the demonstrators.
Later, Patkar said that she wanted to meet the family members of Swain, but a section of locals claimed that the team of activists was there to seek feedback from them about the JSW project.
