Bhubaneswar: The son-in-law of former Odisha MLA Subash Chandra Panigrahi has been arrested by Debagada Police on charges of dowry harassment, assault and attempted murder.
The accused, 34-year-old Sabyasachi Mishra, a chartered accountant and a resident of Jagannath Nagar GGP Colony under the Mancheswar police limits, was nabbed from Anugola following a formal complaint lodged by his wife, Sonali Panigrahi. Following his arrest, Mishra was produced before a local court in Debagada, which rejected his bail application and sent him to judicial custody.
According to the complainant, the couple married on December 8, 2023, with the bride’s family providing substantial household items and 107 grams of gold jewellery as part of the wedding. Although the initial weeks of the marriage passed smoothly, tensions rapidly escalated following a trip to Goa. Upon their return, Sonali claimed her husband and in-laws repeatedly pressured her for additional gold, cash and assets, including demands to transfer jewellery and property into the name of her mother-in-law.
In her complaint, Sonali detailed instances of persistent psychological and physical abuse, noting that when she reported her husband’s alleged substance abuse to her father-in-law, Mishra retaliated with severe physical violence.
The harassment intensified during a family discussion regarding the purchase of a property in Anugola. During discussions at Sonali’s parental home in Debagada, her elder brother suggested registering the property in her name. Mishra allegedly insisted it be bought in his mother’s name instead. When she refused, Mishra reportedly flew into a rage, physically assaulting her, making death threats, and attempting to strangulate her until she collapsed unconscious. Following which, family members rushed her to the District Headquarters Hospital.
Following the failure of initial mediation efforts between the two families, Sonali lodged a written complaint at the Dedagada police station on April 13. Police launched a preliminary inquiry into the allegations before a team raided Mishra’s residence to arrest him.