The mysterious disappearance of the Justice Naidu Commission investigation file from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) continues to spark intense political and administrative friction in Odisha, with police and the Crime Branch struggling to find any major leads even after nearly four months.
In the latest update, the Crime Branch has recorded the statements of three individuals summoned in connection with the case. According to official sources, the probe is actively tracking the movement of the official file between the Home Department and the CMO. However, officials emphasised that until the investigation concludes, it would be premature to label the disappearance as a deliberate theft, maintaining that the inquiry is currently centred around the baseline fact of a missing document.
The controversy dates back to June 10, when the Home Department filed a formal FIR at Capital Police Station after the file—containing crucial findings related to the sensitive assassination of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and the subsequent 2008 Kandhamala riots—went missing from the CMO. Following rising public and political backlash, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi handed the case over to the Crime Branch on July 28.
Despite 117 days passing since the initial FIR and 69 days under Crime Branch jurisdiction, the investigation has made little tangible headway. While notices were previously issued to several former senior officials, the probe remains strictly confined to recording statements and examining procedural file routing.
As questions grow over accountability—specifically where, under what circumstances, and due to whose oversight the sensitive document vanished—the Crime Branch reiterated that all concerned departments are cooperating with the investigation and that further statements will be recorded as needed.
