Cong Leader Surjewala Says Crime Has Become A Business Under BJD Rule In Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Senior Congress leader and AICC general secretary Randeep Surjewala on Thursday came down heavily on the Odisha government and said crime has become a lucrative business in the state under its patronage.

Targeting the government for the rising crime graph, particularly against the women, Surjewala reeled out the data to support his allegation. The state is reporting 4 murder, 4 rape, 11 kidnapping and 12 attempt to murder cases everyday, he said.

Stating that Odisha has earning the dubious 2nd rank in violence against women, he said 68,046 such cases have been reported in the last three years. Besides, 70 women are targeted by criminals and 15 minor girls are kidnapped everyday, he added.

“In the last one year, Odisha has reported 2,65,335 criminal cases. Those include 1,470 murders, 1,211 rape, 4,179 kidnap, and 4,135 attempt to murder. Similarly, 6,912 children including 5,815 girls have been kidnapped during the period,” said Surjewala.

He said Mamita Mehr murder case is neither the first henious crime nor the last in the state. Some time back in Nayagarh district, seven-year-old girl ‘Pari’ was murdered. The police did not take any action. The girl’s parents had pointed fingers at the agriculture minister , Arun Kumar Sahu. When they were denied justice, the parents even tried to immolate themselves in front of the Assembly. Now they are demanding a CBI inquiry into the matter.

In another sensational double murder case, Panchayati Raj and Law Minister Pratap Jaina is accused. His name was also registered in the FIR, but the police tried to give him a clean chit. But dissatisfied with the role of the police, the court has again issued directions to re-investigate the case.

The people of Odisha have not forgotten the ‘Babina’ murder case in Pipili. In this case too, the then minister had to resign after widespread public outrage.

The wounds of Tikri’s Itishree murder are still fresh in our minds, where the name of a big leader and the then MP of BJD had cropped up. Similarly people of Odisha have not forgotten the Kundli gangrape of Koraput.

Every time such heinous crimes take place the names of BJD leaders come to the fore, Surjewala alleged.

On the Mamita Meher murder case, the Congress leader posed the following questions to the government:

• Why is the brutal murder of Mamita Meher, exploitation of her colleagues and girls in the institutions where she was teaching and role of the government in protecting the culprit is not being investigated. What’s the secret?
• Why has Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik not sacked the Home Minister from his post yet?
• Why hasn’t an FIR been lodged against Home Minister Dibya Shankar Mishra for criminal conspiracy under Sec 302 read with 120B of the CrPC.
• Isn’t it a fact that in last few years, names of people associated with ministers and politicians in the BJD government cropped up repeatedly in heinous crimes one after another? Recently a senior journalist, Nabin Das’s son was murdered in broad daylight in Bhubaneswar. And there have been many more such crimes.

Earlier, a Central delegation of the party led by Surjewala met Mamita’s family at Jharani village in Balangir district.

Also Read: Book Accused In Mamita Murder Case For Criminal Conspiracy, Pay Rs 1 Cr Ex-Gratia To Family: Congress