In Odisha, the fate of abducted Odisha MLA, Jhina Hikaka continues to remain uncertain as both the Odisha Government and the Maoists are refusing to budge from their stand. The Odisha Government on Tuesday rejected the demand of the Maoists to free 29 prisoners in exchange of the ruling BJD MLA and has only agreed to facilitate release of 25 prisoners including 17 members of Chasi Mulia Adivasi Sangha, the frontal organsiation of CPI (Maoist) and 8 Maoists. There is also confusion over who will apply for bail for the release of the prisoners. The state government says, the prisoners will have to file bail petitions in their nearby courts through their lawyers, which the Maoists have refused. The Maoists also want all the cases against the prisoners withdrawn, a demand the government is likely to consider only if the Maoists release the MLA by tomorrow evening.

Meanwhile, the state government has declared the names of 15 prisoners going to be released on bail. The Andhra-Odisha Border Special Zonal Committee of the CPI (Maoist), holding the MLA in its captivity, has already warned the state government to take extreme action against the MLA if all the 29 prisoners are not freed by tomorrow evening. The tribal MLA was kidnapped by the Maoists in his home district of Koraput on 24th of last month.