A 24-year-old man who impersonated a local Maoist leader in a note sent to his father to demand ₹35 lakh has been arrested on extortion charges in Odisha’s Kalahandi district, police said on Wednesday.
Police said the 24-year-old man has been arrested by the Odisha Police
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Police said Dinesh Kumar Agarwal, a local contractor, had approached the police complaining about a letter that he had received, which threatened to kill his family if he didn’t pay up.
“The complainant reported that he had received an extortion letter in the name of Maoists,” said Kesinga Sub-Divisional Police Officer Sandeep Majhi.
“During the investigation, it was revealed that his son, Ankush Agarwal, had drafted the letter. The accused has confessed to the crime,” Majhi added.
Police said Ankush placed the letter in his father’s car on October 6 and later sent a similar threat to one of his father’s business partners in an attempt to signal that the Maoists meant business.
Ankush Agrawal was arrested and produced in court on Wednesday, Majhi said.
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.
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Home/India News/24-year-old posed as Maoist to extort ₹35 lakh from father, arrested: Odisha Police
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