Police bust gambling den disguised as birthday party in Odisha’s Bargarh; 27 including hotel manager arrested 

As many as 25 gamblers were arrested from a hotel at Bhatli Square in Bargarh district, informed police on Friday. 

As per reports, some people booked two rooms in Mangalam Palace Hotel at Bhatli Square for a birthday party. Instead of celebrating birthday, they were allegedly involved in gambling on Thursday night. 

Acting on a tip-off, the police formed two teams, one team led by the Additional SP and the other by the Sub-divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Bargarh. The teams along with some officers from the headquarters and town police station swooped down on the hotel and raided room no 201. 

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During the raid, the police caught 25 persons and the manager of the hotel red-handed while indulging in gambling. All 25 persons have been identified as the residents of Saranggarh in Chhattisgarh. 

The raid yielded several items, including five four-wheelers, cash amounting to Rs 6,40,605, 24 mobile phones, and six sets of playing cards. 

The police have noted that one of the impounded vehicles bore a sticker with the Congress party emblem and a designation reading 'President'. The cops have launched a probe to find out the genuineness of the sticker. 

Sub-divisional Police Officer (SDPO), Bargarh, Padarabinda Tripathy informed that all the arrested persons will be brought to court to face legal proceedings.

“After getting information about a casino party running in a hotel named Mangalam Palace at Bhatli Square, two teams were formed. While Additional SP was leading a team, I was leading the other team. Some officers of the headquarters and Town Police station were with us during the raid. We caught them red-handed while they were indulging in gambling in room no-201. We seized cash amounting to Rs 6,40,605, 27 mobile phones and six packs of playing cards from their possession. We arrested 27 persons including the hotel manager,” said Bargarh SDPO, Tripathy.

(Reported by Dharmadatta Padhi)