Bhubaneswar: Ten individuals were arrested and subsequently sent to jail on Thursday in connection with the alleged attack on Dharmasala MLA Himanshu Sekhar Sahoo. Their bail pleas were rejected by the Jajpur Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM) court.
Following their arrest, the accused underwent health checkups before being presented in court. The arrests came after police conducted raids at multiple locations, acting on a complaint filed by Himanshu’s personal security officer (PSO).
To expedite the investigation, the Jajpur Police have formed three special teams to probe the matter.
Himanshu, an Independent MLA backed by the BJP, condemned the violent attack during a press briefing. He urged the public to cooperate with the police investigation and appealed for peace in the area.
Directly accusing senior BJD leader Pranab Prakash Das, Himanshu stated that "BJD’s hooliganism will not be tolerated in Jajpur." He further assured that the BJP-led government would not condone such acts of violence, emphasising that the law would take its course and all perpetrators would be brought to justice.
When approached for comments, Pranab Prakash Das did not respond to the allegations.
The incident reportedly occurred near the Budhapola area in Jajpur district on Wednesday evening. According to the allegations, supporters of Pranab Prakash Das attacked Himanshu with iron rods and sticks, severely beating him. The attackers allegedly snatched his gold chain and damaged his vehicle.
