Sarpanch association president Devendra Pathak sharply criticised MLA Meshram’s public dialogue

Harmony between the Bandha coal block and the displaced villagers had still not been achieved. Administration and company representatives had held talks with the displaced several times without result. Recently, the Deosar MLA held a dialogue with the displaced in the presence of administrative officials, and Bandha sarpanch Devendra Pathak reacted sharply to this public dialogue. He said:

Deosar MLA Rajendra Meshram, giving daydreams to the people of Bandha and several other villages being displaced for the Bandha coal block, held a public dialogue in Bandha village on September 9, 2025, at which Deosar SDM Akhilesh Singh was present as the administrative officer, along with hundreds of police personnel.

In a 45-minute speech at this dialogue, the MLA praised his own achievements and the party, while saying nothing in the interest of the displaced, said sarpanch association president Devendra Pathak Daroga, who spoke to the media to expose the event.

Pathak Daroga said everything MLA Meshram said was laughable, that he took the public for fools, and that he said nothing about any interest of the displaced.

He alleged that when the displaced were not handing over possession to the company, the MLA, in league with the company, was trying to mislead the public and get possession handed over to the company.

The MLA and his family were continuously benefiting through links with the company, he alleged

He said that if he was lying, he should suffer a terrible affliction, and asked the MLA to say what he had said at the Collector’s meeting about land rates in Bandha and Deori.

The MLA said compensation would be given at Rs 50 lakh per hectare; Pathak said he should know that compensation of Rs 20 lakh per acre, which worked out to Rs 50 lakh, had already been proposed.