Aska: Police foiled a murder bid on a liquor trader and arrested 14 persons including three minors who wanted to take over his business here in Ganjam district. The police also seized bombs, pistols and ammunition from their possession.
Additional SP Ajay Pratap Swain, Aska SDPO Subash Chandra Panda and Aska IIC Santosh Kumar Jena revealed the plot before media at a presser held at Aska police station Wednesday.
The arrested persons were Chakanayan Nahak, Harsha Swain alias Dancer, Bhagban Swain, Kiranchand Jena, Babu alias Ramchandra Sethy, Pintu Swain, Jagil alias Jagbandhu Swain, Sibaram Gouda, Sanjay Dash, Karunakar Behera, Dipu Behera and three minors.
The accused were produced in court and later remanded in judicial custody after the court rejected their bail pleas. Similarly, the minors were produced in a juvenile court. According to sources, Bhagaban Sahu and Bulu Dora are well known liquor traders in Aska area. The 14 persons were hatching a plan to eliminate the two and take over their business. Earlier, another businessman Pratap Polai, husband of Aska BJD councillor Babita Polai was shot dead in a moving bus.
Preliminary investigation revealed the accused, who is now serving a sentence in Aska sub-jail over shooting Pratap Polai, was the main conspirator and had hatched the blueprint of the murder from inside the jail. He had appointed 14 persons to carry out his plan.
Being tipped off by the cyber cell, Southern Range DIG Asish Singh informed Ganjam SP Brijesh Kumar Rai who alerted the police after which the arrest was made. The accused have several criminal cases including murder against their names, police said.
