BJP demands Odisha Minister's resignation over minor's murder

Bhubaneswar: Members of the BJP's women wing in Odisha tried to gherao the official residence of Minister Arun Kumar Sahoo here on Friday, demanding his resignation for allegedly shielding the prime accused in the murder of a five-year-old girl in Nayagarh district. They demanded an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the abduction and murder of the minor girl. The members of the BJP Mahila Morcha also got into a scuffle with the police deployed at the residence of Sahoo. "Why is the BJD government afraid of a CBI inquiry into the case? The government is trying to protect Minister Arun Sahoo and denying justice to the victim. The agitation will continue till the minor girl gets justice," said state BJP general secretary Lekhashree Samantsinghar.

She said the government should remove the Minister to ensure a fair probe into the case. Meanwhile, Odisha Congress in-charge A. Chella Kumar said the party had demanded a SIT probe monitored by the Orissa High Court into the incident. "We do not have faith in a CBI probe. We had demanded court-monitored SIT probe which is underway. We expect justice for the minor girl," he added.

The state government has formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the alleged murder of the girl. The parents of the girl had on November 24 attempted self-immolation outside the Odisha Legislative Assembly demanding justice for their daughter. The couple charged Sahoo with shielding accused Babuli Nayak, who they said is a close aide of the Nayagarh MLA.

The child had gone missing while playing in front of her house on July 14 this year. Later on, July 23, her decomposed body was found stuffed in a sack behind the house near a pond.