Bhubaneswar: In a major breakthrough in the robbery-murder of 76-year-old Kunjalata Nanda in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, police have arrested her domestic help and caretaker, Balabhadra Maharana, from Surat in Gujarat.
Nanda, the widow of retired Divisional Forest Officer Hadibandhu Nanda, lived alone at her residence in Buddha Nagar under the Laxmisagar police limits. Her husband had passed away a few months earlier. One son lives in the United States and another in Hyderabad while her daughters reside elsewhere in Bhubaneswar. The crime came to light on the morning of November 4 after tenants grew concerned that she was not responding and alerted relatives, including her son-in-law, who contacted police. Her body was found with hands and legs bound and signs of assault. The almirah inside her house was found open with household items scattered, and gold ornaments worth lakhs as well as a scooter were missing.
Police said the accused, a native of the Tangi area in Khordha district who had worked at the house for about four to six months, allegedly switched off CCTV cameras, tied the victim, and fled after the incident on the night of November 3. A preliminary postmortem indicated death by suffocation/strangulation, with injury marks on the neck and other areas. Some reports had noted head injuries possibly linked to a blunt object. There were no signs of forced entry. Police Commissioner S. Dev Datta Singh and Bhubaneswar DCP Saravana Vivek M visited the site as a scientific team collected evidence. A case was registered at Laxmisagar police station.
How the Accused Was Tracked Down
Following the murder, Maharana fled Bhubaneswar and initially traveled to Ludhiana in Punjab before moving to Gujarat. To evade detection, he frequently changed his location and used different mobile numbers.
According to DCP (Crime) B P Rojiya, acting on specific intelligence, a joint coordinated operation was launched on November 10 by the Surat Crime Branch and Vadodara Rural Special Operations Group. Maharana was intercepted and taken into custody near Krishna Hotel in Karjan along National Highway 48 before he could flee to Delhi. Some of the stolen property has been recovered.
Handover and Investigation
Legal formalities are currently underway, after which Maharana will be handed over to the Laxmisagar Police in Bhubaneswar. Investigators expect his interrogation to help establish the precise sequence of events and clarify whether any other individuals were involved in the crime.
The case has renewed concerns about the security of elderly people living alone and the need for thorough background checks on domestic caregivers in the city.
