Odisha Honeytrap Case: HC Refuses Interim Protection To Archana Nag’s Aide Shradhanjali

Cuttack: The Orissa High Court on Wednesday refused to grant interim protection to Shradhanjali Behera, the aide of honeytrap kingpin Archana Nag.

She is among the five, including Archana and her husband Jagabandhu Chand, against who the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The agency is probing the proceeds of the sextortion racket and had grilled Shradhanjali twice earlier. However, she has not responded to the subsequent summons, sources said.

The court, therefore, asked her to cooperate with ED in the probe. The next hearing of the case has been posted for January 17.

Archana had allegedly deposited a significant amount of money in Shradhanjali’s bank account between 2017 and 2022. The latter had accused her of forcing her into prostitution and luring people to extort money from them by blackmailing. Archana was arrested by Khandagiri police on October 6 on basis of her complaint.

Meanwhile, ED has taken Jagabandhu on 9-day remand. It also has 6 custody of Archana, who has also been arrested under Section 19 of PMLA, and is likely to grill them together about their financial transactions.

The agency has already traced over Rs 2 crore deposits in the bank accounts of Archana and Jagabandhu between 2017 and 2022. Another aide of the couple, Khageswar Patra, was arrested by ED in this connection earlier.