Murder victim’s kin protest outside police stn, MLA house

Rourkela: Residents of Ganjampalli in Rourkela on Thursday protested delay in arresting the accused in the daylight murder of a 27-year-old man, hacked to death two days ago.Family members of deceased Tofan Bindhani (27) and local residents held a sit-in outside Sector 7 police station, also demanding better security in the area.

The protesters also demonstrated outside the residence of Raghunathpali MLA Durga Charan Tanti, urging him to intervene.

Some residents reportedly sat in front of the MLA’s vehicle as a mark of protest. The MLA later spoke to Rourkela SP Nitesh Wadhwani.The SP said the accused have been identified and four special teams have been formed to trace and arrest them.Bindhani, a resident of Sector 6, was with three friends near a school when six youths attacked him with an axe around 1.45pm on Tuesday, police said.

He suffered multiple injuries, including on neck, and was taken to Ispat General Hospital where he was declared brought dead. One of his friends sustained an injury to his hand, while two others fled. The attackers also escaped.Police said preliminary enquiry indicated Bindhani had objected to some youths consuming ganja and liquor in the locality, leading to an earlier altercation. Investigators suspect this could have been the motive and that others may also be involved.

Tension had built up on Wednesday when local residents demanded arrests before allowing the postmortem. After police assurance, they allowed the procedure. After the postmortem, the body was handed over to the family.With no arrests made even by Thursday, anger persisted.