Bhubaneswar: Two murders were reported in Bhubaneswar in a single night, raising concerns over the law-and-order situation. A 22-year-old man was shot dead near Jharpada overbridge under Laxmisagar police limits, while a 40-year-old man was allegedly bludgeoned to death with a cement brick over a suspected extramarital affair in Tarini slum under Saheed Nagar police limits.
In the first incident, miscreants allegedly shot dead Sonu Nayak, a resident of Haladipadia slum, at close range near Jharpada overbridge in Bomikhal-Kataka Road area around 3am Saturday. Bombs were also hurled during the attack. Police recovered the body and sent it to Capital Hospital for postmortem.
Acting on a complaint filed by Shanti Nayak, police registered a case (785/26) and arrested seven persons, including a minor. The arrested were identified as Satyajit Behera, Kuna Ratan, Manoj Behera, Dibya Kumar Bahar, Biswajit Hati and Lipun Jena, all residents of Jharpada.
Police also seized empty cartridges and remnants of exploded bombs. Police Commissioner S Dev Datta Singh, DCP Saravana Vivek M and Zone IV ACP Abhimanyu Nayak visited the spot around 5:30am and launched an investigation. Police suspect the murder stemmed from rivalry over the drug trade or an old dispute. Police said Sonu had created panic in Bomikhal and adjoining areas since Wednesday evening by brandishing a knife. Later that night, he attended a feast with the rival group members near Bomikhal goshala, where a dispute broke out between him and Lipun Jena.
Sonu allegedly hurled two bombs at Lipun’s house. Around 3am, when Sonu was travelling with four friends toward a petrol pump in Rasulgarh, assailants waylaid their vehicle and shot him in the head. Sonu’s father Shankar Nayak demanded death penalty for the accused. In the second incident, Pathani Sahu, 40, was allegedly bludgeoned to death by his brother-in-law, Suresh Singh, over suspicions of an illicit relationship with his wife.
Police arrested Suresh and registered murder case (582/26) following a complaint by the victim’s son, Bitul Sahu. After the murder, Suresh allegedly dragged the body toward a nearby railway track to make the murder appear like a case of accident. However, he failed to place it on the tracks. Suresh frequently quarreled with his wife over the suspected affair. She had been staying at her younger sister’s house in Sundarpada for 15 days. Suresh had invited Pathani to his house in Tarini slum November 6 on the pretext of resolving the dispute. However, he killed Pathani following a heated exchange.