ANGUL: A former sarpanch was brutally hacked to death by a youth over suspicion of sorcery in Balaram Prasad village within Nalco police limits here on Tuesday. The deceased was identified as Sibaram Sahoo, a worker of the ruling BJD. He was twice elected sarpanch and once Zilla Parishad member. The accused youth, Dipak Behera, has been arrested. Dipak is also a supporter of the BJD.
Sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) of Angul Bhabani Shankar Udgata said the wives of Sibaram and Dipak had unsuccessfully contested for the sarpanch and samiti member posts respectively in the last panchayat elections. After the polls, Dipak suspected that Sibaram was practising sorcery on him.
In the morning when Sibaram was watering the sacred Tulsi plant outside his house, Dipak arrived at the spot and hacked him to death with a sharp-edged weapon. “After committing the murder, the accused fled from the scene. Police later nabbed him from Nalco town by tracking his cellphone. During interrogation, the youth confessed to have killed Sibaram over sorcery suspicion. He also said there was no political angle behind the murder,” the SDPO added.