CBI team arrives in Odisha to probe Itishree murder case

Reported by Ranjan Rath
Rayagada/Bhubaneswar, Feb 24:

A seven-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the CBI, led by Inspector RD Sharma, arrived in Rayagada today to probe the death of Itishree Pradhan, a lady teacher of Tikiri Upper Primary School in Ryagada district of Odisha on November 1, 2013.

The SIT team was received by Rayagada deputy collector Isaq Madina after it arrived at the district headquarters town on the Nizamuddin-Vishakhapatnam Samata Express from New Delhi at 4 PM.

The team members later went to the Circuit House where they will stay.

Asked about the arrival of other members of the team, Sharma said the team leader will arrive here tomorrow. He, however, did not reveal any details of the team’s agenda.

Apart from Sharma, the team has two inspectors, a sub inspector, three constables and a steno.

“The district administration would provide all logistics support to the CBI SIT team with regard to the location of the camp and office after the arrival of Singh here tomorrow”, the deputy collector of Rayagada told OST.

Meanwhile, two senior CBI SIT officials— BK Singh, SP, and MK Pathak, DSP—arrived in Bhubaneswar in a flight from New Delhi today.

The two officials are scheduled to reach Rayagada tomorrow after having a meeting with the state Crime Branch officials today. Besides, they will collect relevant files pertaining to the death of Itishree, sources added.

It may be mentioned that Itishree 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.

Though the state government had later 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 directed the CBI to probe the case on January 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.