ROURKELA: A 35-year-old man was allegedly set on fire by a group of miscreants at remote Ganigasha village under Lahunipada police limits in Bonai sub-division of Sundargarh district early Saturday morning.
The victim, Kanhu Charan Mahanta, suffered critical burn injuries across his body and is battling for life at Ispat General Hospital (IGH) in Rourkela. A relative of the victim attributed the attack to past enmity over a land dispute.
Lahunipada police station IIC Prashant Pradhan said that, as per the preliminary report, two motorcycle-borne miscreants were involved in the attack. He said the police were investigating the incident from all angles, including the possibility of past enmity over a land dispute. The victim is currently able to speak, and police are trying to record his statement, he added.
Local villagers rescued Kanhu and rushed him to the Lahunipada Community Health Centre (CHC). He was subsequently shifted to Rourkela Government Hospital before being admitted to IGH as his condition deteriorated.
The victim’s brother-in-law, Bibhisan Mahanta, claimed that Kanhu was walking towards the village bus stop when the miscreants allegedly attacked him. As the road was deserted, they dragged him to a nearby nullah, he alleged.
Bibhisan further alleged that the miscreants forced petrol into Kanhu’s mouth and poured petrol over his body before setting him on fire. As Kanhu screamed in pain with flames engulfing his body, the miscreants fled the scene, he claimed.
He suspected that the attack was linked to past enmity over a land dispute, saying Kanhu owns a valuable piece of roadside land and that a portion of it had allegedly been encroached upon by a private-sector fuel station.
Bibhisan also claimed that Kanhu was working as a Gajasathi volunteer. However, officials of the Bonai Forest Division refuted the claim that Kanhu was working as a Gajasathi.
DIG of Police (Western Range) Brijesh Kumar Rai said that two persons had been detained for questioning following a complaint lodged by the victim’s family members. Further details would emerge after completion of the investigation, he added.
