Bhubaneswar: A separate criminal case was pending against Soumya Ranjan Swain, the Government Railway Police (GRP) constable who was allegedly lynched by a mob in Balianta area on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar on May 7, according to Railway Superintendent of Police Bhawani Shankar Udgata.
Udgata stated on Friday that Swain, who joined the GRP as a constable in 2024, had been absent from duty since April 25. His salary had previously been stopped due to repeated absences. Additionally, a case against him was registered at Cuttack Mahila police station in 2021, involving allegations of cheating a woman on the pretext of marriage and maintaining a physical relationship with her, for which he was reportedly arrested and jailed earlier.
The 32-year-old constable from Adaspur area in Cuttack district died after a violent mob assault near Ramachandrapur under Balianta police limits. He and his associate, Om Prakash Rout, were accused of sexually assaulting two women traveling on a scooter.
His mother, Kabita Swain, had earlier told the media that he ran a gym. She alleged that the lynching was a fallout of the previous case registered against him. “He was beaten to death in front of the police, but no one stepped in to save him,” added the grieving mother.
Five Arrests So Far
Police have so far arrested five persons in connection with the lynching incident.
Speaking to media, Commissioner of Police S Dev Datta Singh said: “An incident took place yesterday near Bhingarpur village under Balianta police limits. A group of people attacked a man, and due to the injuries sustained in the attack, he later died in the hospital. According to the investigation so far, the man and another person were riding a bike, while two schoolgirls were traveling on a scooter. Their bike reportedly collided with the scooter, causing the girls to fall. The girls have alleged in their FIR that while helping them get up, the man misbehaved with them and attempted molestation and rape. After the girls raised an alarm, people from the nearby area gathered at the spot. The crowd the attacked one of the man. The individuals responsible for the assault that led to the man’s death will be identified and brought under the law, and strict punishment will be ensured. Five people have already been arrested, and efforts are underway to arrest others.”
He added people cannot be allowed to law in their own hands.
The incident took place near a bridge at Ramchandrapur under the Balianta police station area on the Hanspal-Nimapara road at about 11.30 am on Thursday. A case of attempt to rape under Sections 62 and 64 of the BNS had been registered against the deceased. A separate case of murder by unidentified persons under Section 103 h
as also been registered on the basis of a complaint lodged by Swain’s family members.
Earlier in the day, senior officials, including Odisha DGP Y B Khurania and Bhubaneswar DCP Jagmohan Meena, visited the spot to review the investigation. State Commission for Women (SCW) chairperson Shovana Mohanty also inspected the site and assured an impartial probe, noting that Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has directed strict action against those found guilty.
SCW chairperson added that the young women will provided police protection, since they expressed a threat to their lives.
Viral Video & Victim’s Account
Disturbing videos that circulated widely on social media showed Swain tied to an iron bar and brutally beaten by a group of people. Policemen were seen at the site while Swain was being relentlessly assaulted.
Meena, however, claimed that PCR and local police personnel rescued the two youths from the mob and shifted them to hospital. Swain was first taken to Balakati Community Health Centre and then shifted to Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar, where he was declared dead. Rout was rescued by police and remains in detention.
In fact, the emergency call was received at the ERSS control room at 11.02 am and the PCR team reached the spot at 11.10 am.
According to the victim’s account, two motorcycle-borne men made objectionable comments, deliberately rammed their scooter, causing the women to fall. One of the accused then allegedly assaulted a woman, hit her on the head, strangled her, tore her dress, and attempted to drag her into a room. Locals intervened to rescue the women. The victim later appealed for the release of those arrested in the mob attack, claiming the locals who helped were not at fault.
Also Read: Woman Recounts Assault By 2 Men That Led To Mob Lynching Of GRP Constable On Bhubaneswar Outskirts
Opposition Slams Govt
BJD president Naveen Patnaik, in a post on X, said, “The incident at Balianta, near Bhubaneswar, where a young man was beaten to death in broad daylight, is utterly barbaric. Even as such a heinous event unfolds near the state capital, the government’s inexplicable silence is shocking the people of the state.”
“If such incidents are occurring in the presence of police, to whom will people turn for protection? Why is the police administration and the government so helpless before criminals?” he asked.
He said if the government is incapable of preventing such incidents in the suburbs of Bhubaneswar, then the situation in other areas of the state is clearly imaginable. “In the recent barbaric incidents in Hinjili, Kanasa, and Dhenkanal, what exemplary actions has the government taken?” he asked.
“The brutal killing of a railway constable in Balianta, reportedly in the presence of police over molestation allegations, is a shocking reflection of the worsening law and order situation in Odisha. No one can be permitted to take the law into their own hand,” OPCC president Bhakta Charan Das said.