In a spine-chilling incident that has once again exposed the deadly grip of the drug mafia on Odisha’s capital outskirts, a 45-year-old man was mercilessly beaten to death with iron rods in the middle of a public square on Friday afternoon.
The victim, Rakesh Das, from Athantar Mohanty Sahi, succumbed to severe head and body injuries while undergoing treatment at Capital Hospital, Bhubaneswar. The attack, allegedly carried out by two known anti-social elements deeply involved in the narcotics trade, took place at Athantar Chhak under Balipatna police station limits.
According to police and eyewitness accounts, the murder stemmed from a long-standing dispute over money and “drugs”. The main accused, Salman Khan alias Pintu, son of Zakir Khan from Bengabati village, and his close associate Zakir Saha have been running an alleged drug powder racket in the area for years. Locals claim the duo operated with impunity, occasionally “arrested” in staged police dramas only to resume business quickly.
On Friday morning, around 11 AM, Pintu and Saha reportedly visited Rakesh’s house, threatened his mother, and demanded ₹10,000 plus the return of narcotics. Hours later, they spotted Rakesh near the local medical square, dragged him to Athantar Chhak, and assaulted him brutally. When some passers-by tried to intervene, the duo allegedly threatened them and left. They returned around 3 PM when the area was relatively empty, knocked Rakesh down, and rained merciless blows with iron rods, demanding money.
Rakesh suffered critical injuries to his head and other parts of his body. Family members rushed him first to Athantar Community Health Centre, where doctors referred him to Capital Hospital. He was taken by 108 ambulance but died during treatment.
Balipatna police, led by Inspector-in-Charge Suryanshu Sekhar Padhi, swung into action immediately. The main accused, Salman Khan alias Pintu, has already been arrested. The body will be handed over to the family after the post-mortem on Saturday.
This is the second barbaric murder reported in the Jayadev Assembly constituency within 24 hours. On Thursday, a similarly gruesome killing took place near Ramachandrapur under the Balianta police station, sending shockwaves across the region.
The incident has triggered widespread outrage, with residents demanding a crackdown on the narcotics syndicate operating in the twin districts bordering Bhubaneswar.
As fear grips the area, questions are being raised about how long the drug menace will continue to claim innocent lives on the streets of what was once considered a peaceful suburban belt.
