BHUBANESWAR: In Bhubaneswar, the cops cannot seem to enforce lockdown during the day. And in the night, the men in khaki do not know how to check anti-socials either. This was pretty evident when anti-socials went on a rampage and vandalised a series of vehicles at Gandamunda locality of the city late on Wednesday.
The lawlessness was all captured in the CCTVs. The rampage spree started at around 12.50 am at lane number 4 of Gandamunda during which doors of a few houses and a shop were damaged and two motorcycles and as many cars vandalised.
Sanjay Kumar Bhuyan, employee of a private company, said the miscreants kept on hurling abuses, targeted houses and damaged vehicles for around 10 minutes. They were carrying sharp weapons and sticks and hit the gates of houses of Papu and Kalia Ranasingh and a tiffin stall owned by Santosh Sahoo.
Sanjay’s motorcycle and car were among the vehicles damaged by the miscreants. “I was sleeping when my wife saw at least three miscreants vandalising my motorcycle. They then went on to vandalise another two-wheeler, a car and broke the front and rear windscreens of my four-wheeler which was parked near Subhash Chandra Bose Park,” he told TNIE.
In the CCTV footage handed over to the police by locals, three armed miscreants can be seen creating ruckus in the area. “Some of their other associates were at a nearby park and waiting for them to return,” said another local. A complaint in this connection has been lodged by the owner of one of the cars vandalised by the miscreants, Durga Prasad Sahoo.
Meanwhile, the police suspect the incident to be a fallout of personal enmity between the anti-socials and Kalia but remain tight-lipped. “Initial investigation suggests most of the anti-socials are residents of Gandamunda and Tarini Basti,” said an officer while none has been arrested yet. A case has been registered and one person detained, an officer said.
In the midst of the lockdown, which the police establishment claims to be a success by rattling out penalty imposed on violators, crime graph has shot up in the State Capital. This month, at least three murders have been reported. A labourer was reportedly stoned to death near the posh Bapuji Nagar area on June 12 evening while a youth was stabbed to death by at least four anti-socials near PWD Basti on June 7 night. In the third case, a labourer was killed by his co-worker near Station Square on June 5. Besides murder, snatching and robbery too have gone up with women falling victims during the day time.
NO FEAR OF LAW