Panchayat samiti ex-head shot dead in Ganjam village

BERHAMPUR: Debaraj Sahu, the former chairperson of the panchayat samiti of Beguniapad and a BJD supporter, was shot dead by unknown assailants at Sumandal in under Ganjam districts, about 50km from here, on Wednesday morning.
Sahu, 52, was drinking tea at a roadside stall in his village at around 8.30am when the incident occurred. At least three miscreants opened fired at him from a close range.The assailants, who in a car, fled the spot after committing the crime.
Though Sahu was immediately taken to Sumandal hospital, the doctors declared him dead. The incident has triggered panic among local residents.
“Senior officials, including the Ganjam SP and the MLA of Kabisurya Nagar, rushed to the spot after the incident. Police recovered some emptyfrom there. We have formed teams and are on the lookout to nab the assailants,” Ganjam SP Brijesh Rai said.
Rai added that the sub-divisional police officers of Chhatrapur and Purushottampur and the inspectors in-charge of Kodala, Polasara, Purushottampur and Khallikote police stations have been given the task to monitor the case and arrest the culprits soon.
Police said patrolling has been intensified in and around the area and the nearby police stations have been informed.
Though the exact reason behind the incident is yet to be ascertained, police have ruled out political enmity as the cause behind the incident. However, they are not ruling out past enmity.
“We lost a strong supporter of our party. We have requested police to investigate the matter and arrest the culprits behind the incident,” BJD MLA (Kabisurya Nagar) Latika Pradhan said.
Sahu was the chairperson of the panchayat samiti in Beguniapada from 2002 to 2007. Though he was a strong supporter of the ruling regional party, he was not active in politics. Santoshini Sahu, his brother’s wife, is now the sarapanch of Sumandal panchayat.
Sahu is survived by two sons. While one assisted Sahu in his business, the other studies in college.