In a case of mistaken identity, police arrested a 42-year-old man of Binishpur under Niali police limits of Cuttack district assuming him to be a wanted criminal of the same village as he is his namesake. Bijay Guin has been jailed for over a month now.
His plight came to the notice of the Orissa High Court on Thursday, which directed his immediate release. The bench of Justice I Mohanty also directed the police to trace the original culprit soon and submit a report in the matter.
According to case records, both have same names but also bore uncanny similarities in terms of their nicknames and even their father’s name. Bijay Guin, the innocent, was called Babula with his father’s name Hari Guin while the other was called Bula and his father Hani Guin.
Bula had been arrested earlier in a theft case in Nuahatgaon village in Puri district. He had also got bail in the case and was released.
However, he subsequently jumped the bail and has been absconding ever since.
After a non-bailable warrant was issued against him, Gop police came to the Binishpur village in search and took Bijay Guin into custody on August 28 this year. He was produced before the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) court and was remanded in judicial custody.
He then filed a petition in the Orissa High Court alleging wrongful confinement for over a month.
The court had called for records from the JMFC. On verification, Justice I Mohanty ordered his immediate release and nabbing the original accused.