PHULBANI: A 24-year-old youth was allegedly killed by his brother following a dispute over distribution of money received from the sale of their ancestral land at Kasinipada village under Phiringia police limits in Kandhamal district on Tuesday night.
The deceased was identified as Ajay Kumar Sahu. The accused, Sanjay Kumar Sahu (26), was arrested by police and produced in court on Thursday.
According to police, three sons of Shashibhushan Sahu of Kasinipada including Ajay and Sanjay had recently sold a piece of land registered in their father’s name for Rs 80 lakh. The brothers reportedly received Rs 17 lakh as an advance, which was divided among the three siblings. However, a dispute allegedly arose over the remaining Rs 63 lakh.
On Tuesday night, Sanjay and Ajay reportedly had a heated argument over distribution of the remaining sale proceeds of the land. The altercation took an ugly turn when the accused allegedly chased Ajay and assaulted him with an iron rod and a sharp weapon. Sanjay later fled the spot leaving his critically-injured brother in a pool of blood near Shiv temple chowk.
On hearing Ajay’s cries for help, some locals rushed to the spot and rescued him. He was shifted to Phiringia community health centre where doctors declared him dead on arrival.
Following the incident, Ajay’s eldest brother Manas Kumar Sahu filed a complaint at Phiringia police station. Acting on it, police registered a case and detained Sanjay for questioning. The accused was arrested on Wednesday and forwarded to court.
Police said a scientific team visited the crime scene and collected blood-stained soil and other materials for forensic examination. Further investigation is underway to ascertain the exact circumstances leading to the murder.