In a shocking late-night development, police are reportedly apprehending Bikram Kumar Panda, a former MLA and Ganjam district BJD president, in relation to the gruesome murder of BJP lawyer and politician Pitabas Panda.
According to sources, a police team lead by Berhampur SP Saravana Vivek M arrived at Panda's home late at night and arrested him so they could question him.
Many of Panda's followers gathered outside the Baidhyanathpur police station after hearing the news, demanding to know where he was. The location of the former lawmaker's detention has not yet been made public by the police, though.
According to sources, Siba Shankar Das, better known as Pintu Das, the former mayor of Berhampur, was arrested by police on Monday.
Additionally, according to sources, a Puri sniper was arrested while reportedly trying to bury a gun in the sand along the shore.
Seventeen days have passed since the murder of Pitabas Panda, a lawyer who shocked southern Odisha. According to reports, police have questioned about 100 people and reviewed more than 70 CCTV tape clips as part of a thorough investigation that looks at the case from several perspectives.
These new arrests raise the possibility of significant leads in one of the most well-known murder cases in Odisha's recent history, but the police have not commented on the developments.