Odisha govt to revisit unresolved murder cases from BJD tenure

House adjourned sine die; most of the working days got washed away due to pandemonium

By Nalini Sahu

Bhubaneswar, Sept. 24: The Odisha government on Wednesday announced that it will reopen several high-profile murder and suspicious death cases that, according to it, were mishandled or deliberately derailed during the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) regime.

Law minister Prithiviraj Harichandan, replying to an adjournment motion in the Assembly, said the move is aimed at ensuring that justice is delivered in cases where the truth was allegedly suppressed under political influence.

Among the cases flagged for renewed investigation are the deaths of Assistant Conservator of Forest (ACF) Soumyaranjan Mohapatra and Anapurna Rout, the first wife of police officer Deepak Rout. The government is also considering fresh probes into the deaths of schoolteacher Itishree Pradhan of Rayagada, a minor girl in Kunduli, Koraput district, and Mamita Meher of Kalahandi, whose case had sparked statewide outrage.

“During the previous regime, several grave crimes went unresolved. The Mahanga double murder case and the Mamita Meher case are prime examples where political heavyweights were accused, but investigations did not move forward due to pressure,” Harichandan told the Assembly.

The minister also revealed new developments in the murder of former health minister Naba Kishore Das. He said the late minister’s family had complained to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi about being silenced by the previous government. “They were allegedly threatened with being left destitute if they raised their voice. On their appeal, the present government has expanded the scope of inquiry to bring all those responsible to justice,” Harichandan said.

The announcement came amid heated exchanges in the Assembly. While BJD legislators accused the BJP government of failing to curb recent incidents of crime, treasury bench members hit back, alleging that the Naveen Patnaik administration had consistently protected the accused in sensitive cases.

Meanwhile, the monsoon session of the Assembly was adjourned sine die, just a day before it was scheduled to conclude. The short-session, which began on September 18, had seven working days. However, most of the working days were washed away due to pandemonium created by the opposition Congress and BJD legislators.