Kandhamal: The Superintendent of Police in Kandhamal has suspended two police officers and terminated the services of three home guard personnel due to their alleged involvement in the mysterious death of a ganja smuggler named Jyestha Bandiki in the district late last month.
While the suspended policemen are ASI Ajit Kumar Behera and Havildar Ramchandra Nayak, the services of home guard guards Abhiram Mahanand, Jagabandhu Kanhar and Ratnakar Nayak were terminated, Kandhamal Additional SP Balabhadra Deep informed.
The body of Jyestha Bandiki was discovered in the Danganamu ghat area near the Gochhapada police station in Kandhamal district, leading his family to accuse the police of initially detaining him for a large bribe before killing him.
As per the deceased’s family’s complaint, a case was registered, and senior police officials began an investigation considering various factors. On Wednesday, the Gochhapada police station’s high-ranking officials announced that disciplinary action had been taken against five of their officers.
Notably, on the 26th, two individuals were stopped by a police patrol at Danganamu ghat while returning to Kantamal from Teliapada by motorcycle, under suspicion of smuggling ganja.
Dasari Digal managed to flee, but Bandiki was detained. His body was later found in the ghat, and his motorcycle was retained at the station. Bandaki’s family alleged that he had been beaten to death by the police, leading to public protests and road blockades in front of the station. The DSP and a scientific team took action under the direction of the Additional Police SP Balabhadra Deep following an investigation into the incident, highlighting allegations of police inhumanity and brutality.