Duburi: CBI sleuths after a gap of 25 years arrested a man from Balasore railway station for his involvement in trade union leader Shyamapada Rout’s murder case in Sukinda valley, in the wee hours of Thursday.
He was identified as Gajendra Mohanta. The native of Ranagundi village under Kalinganagar police limits was a co-accused in the much-hyped abduction and murder that took place July 25, 1993. The incident had then created ripples in the political circles as names of senior political persons figured in the murder.
The incident had almost faded from the public memory but the arrest of Gajendra has put the spotlight on the case. It is apprehended that Gajendra’s arrest might spell trouble for senior political persons whose names had figured in the case.
He was absconding since the incident and was learnt to have taken shelter at Bhiwani in Haryana.
It became a challenge for the sleuths to arrest him as they picked up his nephew Trinath Mohanta in his place after a raid at his residence.
They questioned Trinath repeatedly but without success. When intelligence inputs alerted them of Gajendra preparing to board a train for Bhiwani from Balasore railway station. They immediately left for the railway station and arrested Gajendra from a moving train, CBI inspector Pradip Kumar Manjhi said.
The slain leader who was a loyalist of another trade union leader Mayadhar Nayak was abducted and killed over political rivalry, his wife Archana Rout had then alleged.
She had lodged a complaint in Kaliapani police outpost against 29 persons including the former minister Prafulla Chandra Ghadai and another trade union leader Samrat Gupta. Gajendra, who worked as a domestic help in the house of trade union leader Gupta was one of the accused named in the FIR.
Police arrested 11 persons in this connection and later the matter was handed over to Central Bureau of Investigation for a probe on public demand October 16, 1995. CBI, after taking charge of the probe, arrested former Sukinda MLA Ghadai and trade union leader Gupta. Ghadai after spending 75 days in jail was released on bail as Gajendra who was arrested then escaped from Bhubaneswar.
Later, the then additional and sessions judge BC Dev acquitted all the accused for want of evidence August 19, 2000.