A wave of violence has rattled the Odisha capital ahead of Diwali, with three brutal murders reported in just 48 hours, leaving the Commissionerate Police on high alert.
Late Friday night, two separate killings rocked the city. In the Bamikhal area under Laxmisagar Police Station, 3:00 AM, Sonu Nayak of Haladiapada was fatally shot at point-blank range by miscreants arriving in an auto-rickshaw while heading to a Rasulgarh petrol pump. The Police Commissioner visited the crime scene, and four suspects have been arrested.
Concurrently, in the Tarini Basti area of VSS Nagar, a migrant worker from Ganjam was bludgeoned to death with a stone. Police report the motive was an extramarital affair with a neighbor's Nepalese wife. The husband has been detained and a murder case registered, while the woman remains at large.
This follows another fatal shooting in Shishupalgarh under the Dhauli police station jurisdiction, compounding public safety concerns as the festive season begins.