Mob demolishes suspect’s house after 10-yr-old raped, killed in Odisha’s Bhadrak

Police said the main accused, Satyabrata Das, was arrested on Wednesday morning from his in-laws’ residence in Jagatsinghpur district, where he had been hiding.

Published on: Dec 24, 2025, 21:33:34 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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BHUBANESWAR: A 10-year-old girl who left home to go to school was raped and murdered in Odisha’s Bhadrak on December 24, leading angry villagers in the district’s Chandbali area to stage a 17-hour-long road blockade on Wednesday and finally demolish the house of one of the accused.

Accident or crime scene cordon tape, police line do not cross. It is nighttime, emergency lights of police cars flashing blue, red and white in the background (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Police said the main accused, Satyabrata Das, was arrested on Wednesday morning from his in-laws’ residence in Jagatsinghpur district, where he had been hiding.

The girl went missing on Tuesday, sometime after leaving home for school. When she did not return, her family and other villagers set out to look for her. At 8 pm, locals found her blood-soaked body in a dense forested area near the Baligaon panchayat office, triggering tension in the region.

As word of the crime spread, scores of people converged at the site and staged a massive road blockade at Baligaon, bringing vehicular movement to a complete standstill.

They placed the minor’s body on the road and refused to budge until their demands were met. The protesters also demolished the house of Ganesh Das, identified as one of the accused and a resident of Rampalli village, throwing out all items from the property.

Sub-divisional police officer Trilochan Sethi, the local tehsildar, and the in-charge of Chandbali police station, Paresh Mohanty, rushed to the protest site to hold discussions with the agitators.

Police said a special team conducted a raid and apprehended the main accused, Satyabrata Das, from Jagatsinghpur district on Wednesday morning. Four others had been detained for questioning in connection with the case.

The incident has not only sparked public fury but also intensified political confrontation in Odisha.

Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA from Chandbali, Byomkesh Ray, condemned the gruesome crime and accused the local police of allowing illegal activities, including drug peddling in the area.

The BJD announced a ‘Chandbali Bandh’ on Thursday from 6am to 12 noon to register their protest.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed sorrow over the incident and announced ₹10 lakh ex-gratia from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the victim’s family.

Majhi said police have been asked to conduct a proper investigation into the heinous crime and ensure that the guilty receive the strictest possible punishment under the law.

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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