BERHAMPUR: Even as interrogation of former Congress MLA Ramesh Jena by the Crime Branch continues, Sadar police arrested a realtor Sai Patnaik here for his involvement in land grab incidents.
Sadar Sub-divisional Police Officer Ashok Mohanty said Sai took 3.21 acres of land at Borigaon from its owner Lakshman Sahu. Assisted by Jena, his father Arakhit Jena, coporator R Murali and another realtor Buna Sahu, Sai converted the land into housing plots. When Sahu demanded to know about the cost of the land, Sai threatened him with dire consequences. On Thursday, Lakshman lodged a complaint with Sadar police.
After verification of documents, police registered a case. While Jena, Arakhit and Murali are already in jail, police forwarded Sai to court on Friday. The SDPO said investigation is on and some other persons were also detained in connection with the land grab case. Meanwhile, Jena’s interrogation by CB will end on Saturday and Sadar police will take him on five-day remand to interrogate him in land grab cases. Hundreds of acres of cultivable land in Borigaon, Bhabinipur and Nimakahandi mouza have been converted into housing plots, mostly by Jena and his associates. With the arrest of Sai, three of Jena’s associates have been arrested. Earlier, two realtors, Buna Sahu and Srikant Panda, were arrested.