BERHAMPUR: Yet another land grab case was filed against former MLA Ramesh Jena by the trustee of a temple on Wednesday. Addressing mediapersons, Berhampur SP Asish Singh said, Ramesh, his father Arakhita, realtor R Murali and Buna Sahu forcibly acquired 4.1 acres of land in Borigan. They converted the land into a road to other housing plots. As the land belongs to Raghunath temple, one of the trustees opposed it but later kept silent after Jena and his associates threatened him. The trustee apprised the Endowment officials, who directed him to lodge an FIR.
Meanwhile, the five-day remand of Ramesh by Sadar police ended on Wednesday and he has been produced in court. Police again sought another seven-day remand of Ramesh, said the SP. During verification of 15 bank accounts of Ramesh police found that he was making around ` 10 lakh per annum. He paid income tax till 2013. Since several land documents have been detected in the name of Ramesh and his associates, police suspect that he might have concealed the money he made from criminal activities and invested the same in hawala. Suspecting the role of an experienced accountant behind the transactions of Ramesh, police is in search of the person. The SP said several complaints against Ramesh reached police but the allegations with evidence are being taken into account. Meanwhile, the associate of Ramesh, who has been named in a rape case, is absconding, the SP said, adding he would be nabbed soon.