Bhubaneswar: Lok Sabha MP Aparajita Sarangi on Wednesday said that such murder cannot be committed without political patronage. “The local leader, who is a minister in the state cabinet, was reportedly close to the prime accused Govind Sahu. Besides the minister, other political leaders also frequented the school. Why the state government or the ruling party did not take cognisance of the fact remains a mystery,” she said.
The incident has also raised doubt on the sincerity of the state government in protecting the security and dignity of women, she added.
After a body suspected to be that of the missing schoolteacher, Mamita Meher, was dug out from Mahalinga Satium in Kalahandi district, the MP also cited the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report to highlight the increasing crime against women in Odisha. “The state cannot progress without ensuring the safety of women,” she said.
Referring to the stock reply ‘law will take its own course’ from the government in such cases, Aparajita also expressed doubt over whether the law will be allowed to take its own course in the murder investigation of the 24-year-old schoolteacher.
HERE IS WHAT OTHERS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THE INCIDENT
State Commission for Women chairperson Minati Behera
The whole incident is shocking and shameful. Kalahandi SP has been asked to conduct a fair investigation and file a probe report within 15 days.
Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Pradipta Naik
The sudden disappearance of Mamita Meher, while she was on the verge to explode a bombshell exposing the naked facts of the rampant sex racket doing rounds on the campus of an institution came as a great shock for us all.
It is evident that some hostile persons who did not want her to come up with those allegations have succeeded in their motives as she went untraceable on October 8.
Dibya Shankar Mishra was a regular visitor to the school and the allegations made by the parents are grave and serious, which needs to be investigated thoroughly. Mishra should resign on moral grounds. Since he is in the charge of Home affairs and it will hamper the investigation if he continues his office.
Also Read: Murder Of Odisha Lady Teacher Pre-Planned In ‘Drishyam’ Style!
Senior Congress leader Santosh Singh Saluja
A sex racket is active at the Sunshine English Medium School and Mahaling Regional College under the patronage of Minister Dibya Shankar Mishra. The flesh trade was carried out by entrapping girl students with the promise of good assessments. The minister Dibya Shankar himself also used to spend nights in the college.
The investigation should be handed over to the CBI and the minister brought under the ambit of investigation.
Odisha BJP president Samir Mohanty
The involvement of Minister Dibya Shankar Mishra in the case has been proved by the father of the missing lady teacher which is a matter of great shame for the state. On moral grounds, Mishra should immediately resign from his post.
The BJD, however, continued to support the minister. “Law will take its own course. When Minister Dibya Shankar Mishra has clarified that the real culprits will be brought to the court of law, I don’t understand the need to politicise such a sensitive issue,” said senior BJD leader Debi Mishra.
AGITATIONS
After a 12-hour bandh in Kalahandi, the BJP has called for a similar agitation in Balangir on Thursday.
Also Read: Odisha Lady Teacher Case: BJP Calls Balangir Bandh Tomorrow
While workers of the Kalahandi district unit of BJP enforced the bandh from 6 am, Youth Congress activists led by their president Smruti Lenka staged a demonstration in front of the Naveen Niwas, the residence of chief minister Naveen Patnaik in Bhubaneswar.
A delegation of the BJP led by party state president Samir Mohanty met Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal, seeking dismissal of the minister for an impartial probe into Mamita Meher case. Congress has submitted a memorandum to the governor with similar demands.
WHAT DOES THE NCRB REPORT SAY
Odisha is ranked second in terms of violence against women in the country. At 112.9 offences per 1 lakh population, the state’s crime rate against the fairer sex is second only to Assam where it stands at 154.3. Odisha’s crime rate as per the 2019 report was 103.5. The state saw an increase of 25.72 per cent in crimes against women in 2020 compared to 2018.
Odisha’s crime rate is way higher than the neighbouring Jharkhand, Telangana and Bihar.
A total of 25,489 cases of crimes against women were reported in 2020 against 23,183 in 2019, registering a rise of 9.94 per cent. Odisha police had registered 20,274 cases in 2018.
The state reported 1,211 rape cases last year. Odisha also reported the highest number of cyber crimes against women in the country.
