Nuapada: A sarpanch candidate for panchayat elections was found unconscious near his house in the district on Saturday morning.
According to sources, the candidate, Chulamani Baitharu, is contesting for the sarpanch post of Sunarisikuan panchayat in Khariar block. Polling will be held in the panchayat in third phase on Sunday.
The sources said he left his home on Friday night to attend a meeting with local villagers but did not return.
On Saturday morning, the villagers found Chulamani lying unconscious on a roadside near his house. His hands and legs were tied with a rope.
Since there were injury marks on several parts of his body, the locals suspected that he might have been brutally assaulted by somebody and rushed him to Khariar hospital.
Later, he was shifted to a hospital in Balangir district. His condition was stated to be critical.
Chulamani’s family has filed a complaint at Khariar police station, suspecting that his political opponents might have assaulted him.
The police have registered a case and started investigation.
