Bhubaneswar: Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly and BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik today wrote to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai, urging the latter for the release of former Odisha Minister Naba Das' son Vishal Das who was detained late last night by police in the neighbouring state's Mahasamund district.

"I am writing this message to bring to your notice a disturbing information that Panchayat Raj representatives like Sarpanches and Panchayat Samiti Members of Kirimira block in Jharsuguda district were detained by Chattisgarh police in Sareipali police station in Mahasamund district. They were supposed to participate in a no-confidence motion this morning in the block premises at 10.30 AM. They could not attend the same as they are detained from yesterday midnight along with Vishal Das, son of a former cabinet minister in Odisha," wrote Patnaik in the letter.

"I would request you to look into this and get them released immediately and also to ensure their safety and security while they travel to Odisha border. Many of those detained are women PRI members," Patnaik urged.

Notably, voting for a no-confidence motion against Kirmira Panchayat Samiti Chairperson Krushnapriya Sahu was cancelled today. Though all arrangements were made for the voting, none of the sarpanchs or samiti members arrived. Consequently, the officials left the venue, and the voting process was called off.

Following this, under the leadership of former MLA Deepali Das, BJD workers staged a demonstration in front of the District Collector’s office. The BJD alleged that police attempted to obstruct the voting process through unethical and undemocratic means.

She also accused the authorities of detaining her brother, Vishal Das, and a PRI member in Chhattisgarh since yesterday without evidence against him.

Worth mentioning, Vishal was detained late last night by police in Chhattisgarh’s Mahasamund district. Along with Vishal, several Samiti members and a village Sarpanch were also taken into custody by cops from the Saraipali Police Station.

Vishal claimed their detention was illegal and appealed for intervention. “We have been illegally detained at a police station in Chhattisgarh. Our lives are under threat. We urge the Odisha government and the police DG to intervene and ensure our safety,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dipali accused the police of acting under political pressure. “No-confidence proceedings against the Kirmira block Chairman were slated for 10:30 am today. However, Jharsuguda police, allegedly under the SP’s instructions, detained our supporters around 1 am and handed them over to Chhattisgarh police. When my brother went to check on their situation, he was also detained,” Dipali alleged.

She further criticized the BJP, alleging that the detentions were an attempt to undermine democracy. “This shows the BJP’s fear of losing the no-confidence vote. They are resorting to undemocratic measures to suppress opposition voices,” she said.

Police were yet to comment on the matter.