BJP leader Pitabas Panda murder: Sharpshooter, associate nabbed by Berhampur police from Bihar

In a major breakthrough in the murder of senior advocate and BJP leader Pitabas Panda, Berhampur Police, on Wednesday, arrested two suspects from Bihar, including a sharpshooter believed to have executed the killing.

The development comes around ten days after the high-profile crime that shook the southern Odisha city earlier this month.

Police Closing in on Mastermind

According to sources, a special team of Berhampur Police traced the suspects to Bihar after days of coordinated surveillance across multiple states. One of the arrested men is suspected of having fired the fatal shot at Panda, while the other allegedly carried out reconnaissance of the area before the attack.

Police brought both suspects to Berhampur for interrogation on Wednesday night, according to sources.

Notably, the operation was part of a multi-state probe spanning Bihar, Delhi, and Kolkata, where Odisha Police teams have been gathering intelligence on those suspected to have coordinated the killing. The arrests mark a significant advancement in the investigation, which had not yielded substantial leads for over a week.

Meanwhile, Berhampur Police are also interrogating a close associate of Panda and a local businessman, both of whom reportedly had frequent contact with the slain lawyer. This marks the fifth round of questioning for both individuals, and sources report that they could provide crucial information in determining the motive and identifying those who ordered the hit.

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Senior Advocate Gunned Down Near His Residence

On the night of October 6, Pitabas Panda was shot dead at point-blank range near his residence in Berhampur’s Kamapalli area. The assailants fled immediately after the attack. Panda was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead.

The killing triggered shock and widespread condemnation from both legal and political circles in Odisha. Panda, who had practised law for decades and played an active role in the BJP’s organisational work in southern Odisha, was known to have no recent enmity, according to his family.

The nature of the assault and the precision with which it was carried out led police to suspect a contract killing involving professional shooters from outside the state.