BJD leader Bikram Panda among 12 arrested in lawyer Pitabas Panda murder case
Berhampur(ByAbhishek Mohanty): In a major breakthrough, Berhampur Police on Wednesday arrested 12 persons, including former Berhampur MLA and Ganjam district BJD president Bikram Panda, in connection with the murder of lawyer Pitabas Panda.
Among those arrested are sharpshooter Chintu Pradhan, Corporator Malaya Bisoyi, former Berhampur Municipal Corporation Mayor Shiv Shankar Dash, Bikram Panda’s aide Madan Dalei, student leader Yogi Rout, Rajendra Sahu, and Kalia Bhuyan.
Following their arrest, all the accused were produced before a local court, which remanded them to 14 days of judicial custody after rejecting their bail pleas.
Earlier, Bikram Panda had been summoned to the Baidyanathpur Police Station on Tuesday for questioning regarding a suspected financial transaction linked to the case.
A special team interrogated him late into the night before taking him into custody.
Lawyer Pitabas Panda, a member of the Odisha State Bar Council, was shot dead by two unidentified assailants on a motorcycle near his Brahmanagar residence under Baidyanathpur police limits in Ganjam district on October 6. He sustained bullet injuries to the chest and was rushed to MKCG Medical College and Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival.
Police are investigating multiple angles, including property disputes, financial dealings, and professional rivalry. So far, more than 80 people have been questioned, and more than 500 CCTV footage clips and the victim’s call detail records have been examined as part of the ongoing probe.
