Cuttack: Orissa High Court has issued a notice to the state government to respond by the 5th of March 2024 after hearing a petition seeking a CBI investigation into the murder of Swami Laxmananand Saraswati, a Vishva Hindu Parishad leader of Kandhamal.
In this plea, the petitioner mentioned that on August 15, 2008, i.e. a few days before the murder of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, the CRPF security provided to him, was withdrawn.
On the morning of the 23rd of that month, all the personnel of Odisha Police, who were in charge of his security, remained on leave. That evening, Swami Laxmanananda was killed by 15 people. The very next day, the DG of Police informed in a press conference that Laxmanananda was killed by Maoists.
Alleging conspiracy behind Swami Laxmanananda’s murder and botched investigation, the petitioner had urged the High Court to order a CBI probe into the case to unravel the mystery behind the brutal murder of the highly respected Hindu Sadhu.
Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, an 82-year-old Sanyasi, who had dedicated his life to the service of the Adivasis in the area, was murdered along with 4 of his associates in the Jalespata Ashram on the day of Janmashtami in 2008, while the Ashram’s devotees were getting ready for the festivities.
