Odisha teen bludgeoned to death by friends over mobile phone game

The police said the three minors were playing a game on a mobile phone near the village school on Thursday. Two of them had an altercation with the third boy over playing the mobile phone game.

Published on: Apr 15, 2022, 23:29:49 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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A class 7 student in Odisha’s Koraput district was killed and his body dumped near a reservoir by two of his friends after he refused to share his mobile phone with them for playing video games on Thursday afternoon.

In Odisha’s Koraput district, a teenager was killed and his body dumped near a reservoir by two of his friends after he refused to share his mobile phone with them on Thursday afternoon. (HT PHOTO.)

According to the police, after the father of the deceased reported that his son was missing and lodged a complaint with the Koraput town police station on Friday morning, the investigation into the case began.

The police said the three minors were playing a game on a mobile phone near the village school on Thursday. Two of them had an altercation with the third boy over playing the mobile phone game.

“Soon the fight turned ugly and the two minors overpowered the one who had the phone. They bludgeoned the 12-year-old to death on the spot with a stone. To cover up the death they dragged and dumped the body in Kolab reservoir,” said Koraput additional SP, Utkal Keshari Das. A case was registered based on the FIR lodged by the deceased’s father. Since the deceased was a tribal, relevant sections as per the SC/ST Atrocity Act have also been registered.

Last week, a man in Nabarangour district was killed by his friend after a scuffle broke out between them over a lost mobile phone. Sukalal Rout and his friend Ghanashyam Majhi were consuming alcohol on Thursday evening when a fight broke out between them over the missing mobile phone. Later, the verbal duel took an ugly turn when Rout bludgeoned Majhi to death.

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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