Normalcy returned to violence-scarred MV-26 village in Odisha’s Malkangiri district on Tuesday after marathon peace talks between tribal and Bengali communities ended two days of fierce communal clashes triggered by the brutal murder of a tribal woman.

The breakthrough came when district administration officials, including Revenue Divisional Commissioner, Collector Somesh Upadhyay, DIG and SP, persuaded both sides to join a peace committee meeting attended by local MLA Narasingha Madkami. After hours of dialogue, representatives pledged to maintain calm and prevent further escalation. Collector Upadhyay confirmed the talks were “successful” and both communities committed to lasting peace.

The unrest had erupted Sunday when thousands of tribal villagers stormed MV-26, torching and vandalising Bengali homes over the gruesome murder of Lake Podami, whose headless body was recovered from the Potteru river. Police arrested Bengali settler Subharanjan Mondal for the killing linked to a land dispute, but enraged tribals attacked the settlement, forcing most residents to flee. Preliminary surveys show 163 of the village’s 188 houses were damaged or destroyed.

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Curfew and internet blackout remained in force across the area for the second day, ensuring no fresh violence occurred under heavy security deployment. Odisha DGP YB Khurania personally reviewed ground arrangements late Monday. Tribal families, who had earlier refused the mutilated body, finally allowed postmortem on Tuesday and performed last rites using a clay head replica as the traditional substitute since the real head remains missing.

While Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced ₹4 lakh ex-gratia and ₹30,000 immediate funeral aid for Podami’s family, tribal leaders handed over a seven-point charter demanding dissolution of MV-26 settlement, removal of all “unauthorised” Bengali settlers from Malkangiri-wide, ₹30 lakh compensation, land transfer to the victim’s heirs, and capital punishment for the accused. Curfew will continue and internet suspension has been extended until Wednesday noon as precautionary measures.

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