Bhubaneswar: The husband of a sarpanch and a panchayat samiti member were critically injured as they were reportedly involved in a violent assault on each other in Odisha’s Nayagarh district on Sunday.
According to sources, the husband of BJD supported sarpanch of Saradhapur panchayat under Itamati police station in the district, Santosh Kumar Muduli, and BJP supported samiti member of the same panchayat Sujit Kumar Pradhan have been political rivals though they are neighbours.
Even after the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in the state, the two leaders did not end their political rivalry and a simmering enmity continued between them.
Muduli and Pradhan were engaged in a heated exchange of words over some unknown reasons. As the argument escalated, they attacked each other. Soon they were joined by their supporters who were involved in a violent clash.
Both Muduli and Pradhan sustained grave injuries in the attack with sharp weapons. Finally, the locals intervened and admitted them in the district headquarters hospital (DHH) at Nayagarh. Both of them were later shifted to hospitals in Bhubaneswar as their condition deteriorated, the sources said.
On being informed, a team from Itamati police station went to the village and started investigation. They have also registered a case in this regard.
