After a two-year hiatus due to Covid-19 restrictions, extortionists have resumed their activities from Bhubaneswar to Cuttack and even in the western Odisha region of Nuapada.
A rise in extortions committed in the name of the Puja celebration appears to have caused problems for the law enforcement agency as the holiday season beckoned with the conclusion of Ganesh puja in the state.
After a two-year hiatus due to Covid-19 restrictions, extortionists have resumed their activities from Bhubaneswar to Cuttack and even in the western Odisha region of Nuapada.
According to sources, a criminal who demanded Rs 10,000 in extortion on behalf of the District Mahotsav Committee shot and killed a woman in Thutibar hamlet, which is under the jurisdiction of Nuapada’s Komna police.
According to her husband Sharat Chandra Sahu’s complaint, the scoundrel made the demand on Wednesday night. The criminal brandished a gun at Sahu after encountering resistance from him.
Sahu’s wife Kumudini Shabar, feeling danger, pulled him away and moved to the front of the firing line. As soon as the bullet struck her, she passed away.
They were dozing off last night when a miscreant by the name of Nilambar Suna from the same village knocked on the door and demanded money, according to Prashant Patnaik, Nuapada SDPO. He shot Sharat’s wife after threatening the pair with a gun when they opened the door. A case has been reported, and an investigation is ongoing.
In a related instance, miscreants violently beat a fruit vendor in Bhubaneswar’s Kalinganagar K-7 neighbourhood on Tuesday after he allegedly resisted extortion. Four people have been detained by the police in this matter.
Cuttack, a millennium city, is not an exception. Violence involving extortion is hardly a surprise to the citizens of the Durga Puja-renowned city. The police are prepared to bring charges against anyone caught extorting money in the name of puja as the puja committees prepare to organise puja in a spectacular style this year.
Additionally, the Commissionerate Police has provided hotlines at 6370701550, 8763068464, and 7077198111 for Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, respectively, to report any such extortion during puja incidents.
Pinak Mishra, the DCP for Cuttack, stated in a statement to reporters, “We are hearing allegations of some persons attempting to coerce others into giving them money. This also qualifies as extortion. People can contact us at that number to report similar incidents.
33 antisocial people have been detained by the Commissionerate Police since January 2022 as part of the continuing operation “DADABATI KU NAA” (No To Extortion), which targets people who demand illegal subscriptions (extortion). According to senior officials, eight cases have resulted in the arrest of 13 antisocials so far in September.
Prasanta Patnaik