Bhubaneswar: A local youth committee in Chhattisgarh’s Gariyaband district, along with a top administrative officer and three policemen, faced strict action from the administration for facilitating and participating in an opera show that featured alleged obscenity by Odisha’s controversial performer Nisha Maharana on a public stage.
The action followed a video purportedly showing Nisha Maharana performing in a semi-nude state on stage going viral on social media, sparking widespread outrage. The video depicts the performer stripping while engaging in explicit acts and interacting with the audience.
Local Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Tulsi Das Markam, along with some police personnel, was seen participating in the programme. Following the public outcry, Gariyaband Collector Bhagwan Singh Uikey removed SDM Markam from his post and attached him to district headquarters.
Similarly, the Superintendent of Police (SP) suspended three policemen caught on camera: Head Constable Dilochan Rawte, Constable Shubham Chauhan, and Constable Jai Kansari.
The Collector stated that, as an executive magistrate, Markam should have stopped such a programme. Instead, he allowed it to continue uninterrupted.
The show was organised by a local youth committee at Urmala village and had obtained permission from SDM Markam. The committee, which hired Nisha Maharana from Odisha, had promised only entertainment.During the programme, policemen, local spectators, and officials were seen showering cash and filming the acts.
Gariyaband SP Vedvrat Sirmour said that 14 members of the organising committee have been arrested and forwarded to court.
