A day after former Mahanga Panchayat Samiti chairman Sarat Nayak was suspended from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) for his alleged involvement in Mahanga minor girl death case, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday cornered the Odisha government over the sensitive case.
State BJP Vice-President, Lekhashree Samantsinghar alleged that Sarat Nayak is an associate of former minister and Mahanaga MLA Pratap Jena. Hence, Pratap Jena should also be brought under the purview of the investigation, she demanded.
“It must be probed on whose instructions the incident has occurred. Sarat Nayak is a close associate of former minister and Mahanga MLA Pratap Jena. It was Jena who conspired with the police to suppress the entire matter. Though Sarat Nayak has been suspended, no action has been taken against the police personnel who were trying to suppress the matter by not conducting the post-mortem. Pratap Jena should also be brought under the purview of the investigation,” said Samantsinghar.
No comments could be obtained from BJD or Pratap Jena on the allegations brought by the BJP.
It is pertinent to mention here that a Class 10 girl student had died on June 16 under mysterious circumstances and it was alleged that her body was disposed of in haste without post-mortem. An investigation has already started into the mysterious death of the minor girl.
On Thursday, a team of police questioned a physical education teacher (PET) of Gokan High School and his mother. According to sources, the investigation team questioned PET Anup Ray and his mother Bijaylaxmi Ray at Cheliagarh village.
Sarat Nayak was brought under the purview of investigation after an alleged audio of him talking with the teacher’s mother demanding money had gone viral on social media.
Cuttack SP (Rural) Mihir Panda said, “Our investigation is underway and it will be a comprehensive one. Additional SP is conducting the probe by taking all aspects into account. Based on the report, the next course of action will be decided. As of now, it will not be appropriate to reveal anything on the matter as the inquiry is pending.”