Bhubaneswar: An elderly man hailing from Jagatsighpur attempted to commit suicide by consuming phenyl in front of Lokseva Bhawan here on Wednesday.
According to sources, the man identified as Rabindra Mohan Das (75) of Raghunathpur In Jagatsinghpur, in a bid to end his life, consumed phenyl in front of Lok Seva Bhawa. However, police personnel present at the spot rescued him and rushed him to the hospital.
As per initial reports, Das, a native Jagatsinghpur, took the extreme step allegedly due to the apathy of police and indifference towards him.
In a written complaint, the elderly man had alleged that he had spent around Rs 5.12 lakh to build a Gents Parlour in the Kalinga Vihar area and had employed one Ajay Barik in the parlour. However, 10 days after the parlour started, Ajay Barik, Ranjan Barik and the property owner Satyabrata Barik ousted him from the parlour.
The elderly man also alleged that the said persons snatched away Rs 50,000 from him by brandishing knives and threatening to kill him. Luckily, he escaped from the scene after locking the parlour. After two days, he mustered courage and reached the Tamando police station to lodge an FIR.
Rabindra further said that he complained to the police four times about his plight but to no avail. The police neither register the FIRs nor took any action against the accused persons. Following this, he sent complaint letters to IIC, DCP, and Commissioner through postal on 12th November 2022 but still got no reply.
The elderly man then knocked at the doors of the DGP office but returned empty-handed. Then Tamando PS 2nd Officer took him to the police station and the following day the IIC found that the lock at the parlour has been broken. Upon enquiry, Ajay Barik and Satyabrata Behera admitted to having broken the lock and running the parlour on their own. The IIC then locked the parlour and took Rabindra to the police station.
The next day the IIC allegedly asked the elderly man to take away all his belongings from the parlour or sell them to others. After that, he agreed to give away the parlour for Rs 3 to 3.5 Lakhs. The police then took his signature on a piece of paper and handed him over a copy of an FIR.
Rabindra alleged that the police did not take any action against the accused persons and let them go. He further alleged that the IIC is himself involved in shielding the culprits who are trying to take away his earnings. He has demanded strict action against all those involved.
Here’s What Zone-3 ACP Said
Speaking to Pragativadi, Zone-3 ACP Rajat Ray said that the police have already completed all the investigation steps and submitted the Charge sheet in this case. “The property belonging to the complainant has been seized and he has been intimated multiple times to collect it but he has not turned up. He is asking for money from his partners to be paid which is not in the purview of police action.”
And also the OHRC has directed the petitioner to take the seized articles from the possession of Tamando PS IIC (vide OHRC Case no. 3007/2021). The petitioner did not take the seized articles or run the parlour again, he added.
