Bolangir: The main accused in the Patnagarh parcel bomb blast case, Punjilal Meher, who had been granted an interim bail for four days to perform the ‘shradh’ rituals of his mother, was released from Bolangir jail Friday.
Orissa High Court had granted him bail Wednesday, but with some restrictions. During the bail period, he should not try to eliminate or cause harm to witnesses or proofs and interact with media people. He cannot go out of his village either. If needs be, he must intimate the inspector-in-charge (IIC) of the police station that his village is coming under before leaving the village.
The Orissa High Court has also directed the IIC to keep a watch on Punjilal’s movements. Punjilal has been asked to present in person at the jail by 11am of January 28.
Punjilal had come out of the Bolangir jail January 12 this year on a one-day interim bail to perform the last rites of his mother.
Notably, Punjilal, a lecturer at Jyoti Vikash Junior College at Bhainsa near Patnagarh, was arrested by the state Crime Branch April 25, 2018, in connection with the parcel bomb blast case that occurred February 23. In the incident, a newly-married techie Soumya Sekhar Sahu and his grandmother Jemamani Sahu were killed. Soumya’s wife Reema had received serious injuries in the incident.
At that time investigators had alleged that Punjilal plotted and executed the murder very minutely after he was replaced as principal of the college by the deceased groom’s mother.
PNN