Odisha CM orders suspension of Choudwar ACP after allegations of custodial death

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], September 23 (ANI): Odisha Chief Minister Charan Mohan Majhi has ordered the suspension of Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) of Choudwar police station in Odisha’s Cuttack district after an incident of an alleged custodial death, the state administration officials said on Tuesday.

According to an official statement from the Chief Minister’s office, ACP Biswa Ranjan Sahu, in charge of Choudwar police station, was suspended after a complaint was lodged alleging custodial death of Rasananda Nayak, who was taken into custody after being accused of vehicle theft. According to the complaint, who is also Nayak’s wife, officials beat the person to death in the police station. However, officials are yet to ascertain the cause of the death.

Apart from the ACP, Superintendent of Police Niranjan Goda, Constable Kamal Lochan Majhi of Odisha Armed Police Force (OAPF) have earlier been suspended over this case due to dereliction of duty.

Rasananda Nayak, a resident of Dhenkanal district, was detained at the Choudwar police station after being accused of stealing a vehicle. The person was admitted to the SCB medical college in critical condition on Monday night, with the doctors declaring him dead in the hospital. The accused had been in custody since Monday.

However, the cause of death is yet to be ascertained, officials said. Further investigation into the incident is ongoing.

Meanwhile, in another incident in Puri, Odisha police arrested two people in relation to a case of a young woman being allegedly gang-raped at Baliharchandi Peeth.

A young man and a young woman had visited Baliharchandi, a tourist destination, when four youths from the local Chandiput village took their photos and blackmailed them. The young woman was later allegedly assaulted by them, officials said.

District Collector Divya Jyoti Parida said that an inquiry was underway and legal steps would follow.

“An inquiry is going on. The police will take required legal steps after inquiry,” Parida told ANI.

Former Chief Minister and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president Naveen Patnaik on September 16 also slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led government over the alleged gang rape, saying that it is heart-rending to witness “horrifying patterns of violence against women reported across Odisha”.

He said that the BJP leaders are engaging in “theatrical display of concern, the predators prowl on broad daylight with impunity” and demanded strict action against the guilty. (ANI)

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