Balangir/Raipur: With the second-phase remand period of Punjilal Meher, the mastermind of the sensational Patnagarh parcel blast case, ending on Monday, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Crime Branch left Raipur on Sunday afternoon.
The team along with Meher are scheduled to arrive in Patnagarh in Odisha’s Balangir district in the night.
As directed by Patnagarh SDJM court, the SIT will produce Meher by 12.30 pm on Monday.
Briefing mediapersons before returning to Patnagarh, Crime Branch IG Arun Bothra said the investigation is underway in Raipur since the parcel bomb was booked from the city.
Stating that Meher had offered more money to the autorickshaw driver to book the parcel with the Skyking Courier, he said no action will be initiated against the latter as he had no knowledge that a bomb was inside the parcel and was just doing his duty.
He also announced that anyone providing information about the autorickshaw driver would be given a cash reward of Rs 25,000. “If the autorickshaw driver is traced, we will be able to get full-proof evidence for the conviction of the accused in the court,” he pointed out.
Bothra said Meher had asked the autorickshaw driver to book the parcel with DTDC Courier Service. However, when asked for the Aadhar Card, Meher returned and asked the driver to take him to Skyking Courier, where he booked the parcel.
He, however, said the Crime Branch has not been able to get any information about the presence of the autorickshaw driver at DTDC Courier Service as the CCTV installed there was defunct.
The SIT had taken Meher to Raipur on Saturday where he had given a live demo on his modus operandi, starting from boarding the train from Kantabanjhi, hiring two rickshaws and one autorickshaw and booking the parcel.
As per rules, police can take an accused on remand for a maximum of 15 days. While the Crime Branch has already taken Meher for six days in the first phase and five days in the second phase, it can pray the court for his remand for another four days.
Reliable sources said the SIT would most likely seek his remand only after the two rickshaw pullers and the autorickshaw driver are traced.
Meanwhile, Meher, who was the English lecturer at Jyoti Vikash College at Bhainsa in Patnagarh, has been placed under suspension by the Higher Education Department.
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