Six people get life imprisonment in Odisha for murder of RTI activist

Though the incident took place in Kandhamal district, the case’s trial was conducted in Berhampur on the direction of Orissa HC after the victim’s wife requested to transfer trial to Berhampur

Updated on: Nov 26, 2024, 12:24:28 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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A sessions court in Ganjam district of Odisha on Monday sentenced six persons to life imprisonment for the murder of a 48-year-old RTI activist of Kandhamal district in 2019.

The case dates back to December 2019. (Representative file photo)

Ganjam district and sessions judge Rupashree Choudhury sentenced Rama Narayan Nahak (25) of Haridapadar, S Balaji Achary (34) of Mundamari, Rasa Bihari Dash (44) of Bandhaguda and Babulu Muni (35) of Aska in Ganjam district, K Biswajit Patra (47) and Kanhu Charan Sahu (27) of Sunapanga in Kandhamal district over their involvement of murder of RTI activist Panda (46), who was shot dead on December 10, 2019 outside his home.

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Though the incident took place in Kandhamal district, the trial of the case was conducted in Berhampur on the direction of Orissa high court after the victim’s wife requested the HC to transfer trial to Berhampur.

On 10 December 2019 at about 7:30am, Abhimanyua Panda was in his residence in Baliguda, when two people came to his house and started arguing with him about an issue with the local Jagannath Temple.

After Panda became a non-hereditary member of Jagannath Mandir Trust of Baliguda, a dispute started with the former secretary of the temple with respect to the shop rooms of the temple.

Panda was threatened by the accused due to his proactive role relating to temple administration and eviction from shop rooms of Shri Jagannath Complex.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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