On the 114th birth anniversary of Saheed laxman Nayak, who fought against the British rule till his last breath, rich tributes were paid to the tribal leader by leaders of BJP Yuva Morcha here on Friday.
Paying floral tributes to the statue of the martyr at Adivasi Padia here, Morcha’s State president Umakant Pattnaik recalled that Nayak, a cult-figure among tribals, was born in Tentuliguma village of Koraput to Padlam Nayak who was also a tribal chief and Mustadaar under Jeypore Samasthanam in the then Madras Presidency.
Nayak organised the rebels successfully against the British exploitation, which made him a leader. During his training at Naupuri, Nayak got the opportunity of inculcating the spirit of nationalism and Gandhian principles. He carried a charkha with the message of adult education and abstinence from alcohol to every tribal household and brought about a complete turnaround among them, recalled Pattnaik.
Responding to the call of Mahatma Gandhi, Nayak led a procession on August 21, 1942 and demonstrated peacefully in front of Mathili police station, where the police fired at the demonstrators indiscriminately which killed 40 and injured over 200 people. Nayak was implicated in a murder case and consequently was awarded death penalty on November 13, 1942. He was hanged on March 29, 1943 in Brahmapur Jail.