Father of Odisha’s forest officer seeks CBI probe in son’s death

Abhiram had alleged in the FIR that DFO Sangram Keshari Behera had an illicit relationship with his son’s wife Bidya Bharati. He now says that the investigating agencies have been suppressing several facts regarding his son’s suspicious death

The 70-year-old father of Odisha’s assistant conservator of forest who was burnt to death under mysterious circumstances on July 12 this year has approached Orissa high court seeking a CBI probe or Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe monitored by the high court alleging the investigation into the case is unsatisfactory.

Abhiram told the high court that CID made no efforts to arrest his daughter-in-law Bidya Bharati, Gajapati DFO Sangram Keshari Behera and cook Manmatha Kumbha despite they being accused in the FIR. (HT Photo)

On July 12, assistant conservator of forests of Paralakhemundi in Odisha’s Gajapati district, Soumya Ranjan Mohapatra sustained 95% burns at his official quarters while reportedly burning old newspapers and some other papers. His wife Bidya Bharati, who was present in the next room, has been named as one of the accused along with the divisional forest officer (DFO) Sangram Behera. Mohapatra, an Odisha Forest Service officer of 2020 batch, was rushed to MKCG Medical College and hospital in Berhampur town from where he was shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital of Cuttack. He succumbed to his burn injuries on July 13.

Now his father Abhiram Mohapatra has alleged that neither Odisha Police nor the Crime Investigation Department (CID) can deliver justice in his son’s death case and has made top police officers of the state, CBI director and state home secretary parties in his petition.

Abhiram alleged that CID made no efforts to arrest daughter-in-law Bidya Bharati, Gajapati DFO Sangram Keshari Behera and cook Manmatha Kumbha despite they being accused in the FIR. “A video has surfaced which shows on the day of the incident, inspector Bibekananda Swain and officer-in-charge Mamatarani Panda were collecting some articles from my son’s residential quarters. What have they been investigating for the last 81 days? We suspect the role of Odisha Police. ... So, therefore, we are applying to the high court for a CBI enquiry,” he said.

Abhiram had alleged in the FIR that DFO Sangram Keshari Behera had an illicit relationship with his son’s wife Bidya Bharati. He now says that the investigating agencies have been suppressing several facts regarding his son’s “pre-meditated killing”.

After the then Gajapati police chief Tapan Patnaik gave a clean chit to DFO, the probe was handed over to CID on August 14. CID last month conducted polygraph tests on Bidya Bharti Panda, Sangram Keshari Behera and Manmath Kumbha.