CBI begins probe into Itishree murder case in Odisha

Reported by Ranjan Rath
Rayagada, Feb 25:

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the CBI today began the probe into the murder of Itishree Pradhan, the lady teacher of Tikiri Upper Primary School in Odisha’s Rayagada district, who had succumbed to severe burn injuries on November 1, 2013.

The SIT sleuths began investigation after their team leader CBI SP BK Singh and DSP MK Pathak arrived here from Bhubaneswar this morning on Hirakhand Express.

Earlier, seven members of the team, led by CBI SIT Inspector RD Sharma had arrived here on Tuesday afternoon.

Soon after their arrival, the two CBI officers met district SP K Siva Subramani. Later the nine-member team arrived at Tikiri Upper Primary School and collected information from the school staffs including the headmaster and peons. They also visited the room inside the school where Itishree was staying.

The team later visited Tikiri Hospital and Tikiri Police Station later in the day, sources said.

The team is likely to issue summons to the people in connection with the case from tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the district administration has assigned the duty of assisting the CBI team in its investigation to sub collector Debasis Kar.

The CBI team has been allotted a space at the Mission Shakti office to set up its camp during the field investigation.

It may be mentioned that the lady teacher was set on fire inside her room in the school campus on the night of October 27, 2013 and succumbed to her injuries at the CARE Hospital at Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh on November 1.

While the state government had ordered a Crime Branch probe into the incident, the latter has failed to nab the prime accused more than a year after the incident.

Following a writ petition filed by Sudipta Lenka, a law student from Bengaluru, the Supreme Court had directed the CBI to probe into the case onJanuary 20 this year.

While the state government had requested the apex court to allow it to continue the investigation by the Crime Branch, the court declined to accept the plea pointing out that the mode of investigation by the state police had cast a doubt since the prime accused is yet to be nabbed more than one year after the incident.