BARGARH: Mystery shrouds the death of a junior engineer (JE) whose body was found inside his locked car near Haldipali Chowk within Bargarh Town police limits on Friday morning.
Police identified the deceased as 44-year-old Chandra Sekhar Jhadia, who was posted as a JE in Barpali block of the district.
Sources said Jhadia left his home in Bargarh town for office at around 11 am on Thursday. He last spoke to his wife at around noon and thereafter, stopped responding to calls. Worried by his prolonged absence, his wife launched a search and found Jhadia’s body inside his locked car at Haldipali Chowk during the wee hours on Friday.
“My husband last called around noon and informed me that he would be late. I kept calling him the entire night but he neither answered nor returned my calls. I decided to go to his office and saw his car parked along the road,” said the wife.
On being informed, police rushed to the spot, recovered the JE’s body from the car and sent it to the hospital for postmortem. Jhadia’s family initially believed that his car may have malfunctioned due to a possible short circuit as the air-conditioning system remained on for an extended period. However, police refuted the claim after examining the vehicle and confirmed that the car showed no signs of malfunction.
Police have launched a detailed inquiry to ascertain the circumstances leading to Jhadia’s death. Local residents have been urged to provide any information regarding suspicious activities that might assist the investigation.
Bargarh Town IIC S Kandankel said so far, there is no indication of any foul play. The JE’s family informed police that he often came home late in the night and on many occasions, slept in the car. The family has also not alleged any foul play.
“The body has been handed over to the family after postmortem. The exact cause of death will be ascertained after the autopsy report arrives. Further investigation is underway,” the IIC added.