The mysterious death of BJD Zilla Parishad member Dharmendra Sahoo took a political turn with the Opposition BJP on Saturday alleging the role of State School and Mass Minister and local MLA Samir Ranjan Dash in the case.
Sahoo, the member of ZP Zone 11 in Nimapada. was found hanging from the balcony of his residence in Sishupalgarh of Bhubaneswar today.
Speaking to mediapersons, BJP woman leader Pravati Parida alleged that Dash is the main character behind the marital discord in Sahoo’s family and demanded a high level probe into the case.
“It does not appear like a suicide, but a well-planned murder. In his social media post, Sahoo has urged to bring to public the videos stored on his two mobile phones. It implies that he might have suspected that he would be killed for which he made the post. The way his body was found also hints that he might have been killed and hung from the balcony to make the case look like a suicide,” Parida alleged.
“He (Sahoo) had also attempted suicide 15 days back. His wife had lodged an FIR with Lingaraj police station. He was later traced to a hotel. Minister Samir Dash is the main character behind the dispute in Sahoo’s family. BJP has demanded that the minister immediately tender his resignation and face the probe,” she added.
Moreover, the BJP leader demanded that the police must not destroy the data of Sahoo’s two mobile phones in the name of investigation.
“The police must investigate the matter properly. They should probe who was present with Sahoo on that night and examine the CCTV footage of his house,” she demanded.
Reacting to the BJP's allegations against him, the S&ME Minister said, “I have no knowledge of the matter. I can only speak about it after understanding the case.”