After almost one and a half months, the State Government has ordered a Crime Branch inquiry into the death of a person whose charred body was found on the premises of Anandatma Ashram near Salepur in Cuttack district.
According to sources, the Home Department has issued an order to this effect.
It may be recalled that Anandatma Baba was arrested a day after the half-burnt body of the youth identified as of Ashok Patra, a resident of Chahapada village near Salepur, was discovered from inside the ashram on September 12.
The local residents had vandalised and set afire the ashram of Anantatma Baba alias Alok Bisoi. The self-proclaimed godman, presently lodged in Salepur sub-jail, was arrested a day after the incident based on an FIR filed by the father of the deceased Prabhat Kumar Patra.
The complainant in his FIR had stated that his son was called to the ashram by the godman.
Ashok, along with three of his friends, had gone to the ashram where the aides beat his son to death and set his body afire in order to destroy evidence, Ashok’s father had alleged.
However, police gave a clean chit to the godman and arrested three persons, Chandra Sekhar Rout alias Tulu (40), Madan Sahu (40) and Pabani Sahu (35) of Chahapada village, who had accompanied Ashok to the Ashram, on murder charges.
Cuttack SP (Rural) Guru Das Kundu had said that it came out during investigation that the Baba was not involved in the murder case.