Although four days have passed to the kidnapping of a Kolkata businessman and his driver in Sundargarh, but the police are groping in dark.
Even if name of a businessman of Balangir district had been mentioned in the FIR suspecting his involvement in the kidnapping, police have not traced him who is reportedly absconding now. Two separate police teams of Sundargarh are now conducting a search operation at two different locations outside the district.
Pratik Patodia (31), director of Ashok Multiyarn Mills limited (AMMl), located at Kirei, Sundargarh and his driver Rohit Tanty, were allegedly kidnapped from Badbahal area on SH 10 on Friday. The staff of AMMl had lodged a preliminary complaint at Bhasma police station of Sundargarh, following which police had started an investigation.
On Friday evening, AMMl personnel manager Indra Bahadur Singh had lodged another complaint in police station, wherein he suspected involvement of one Anil Bansal of Kantabanjhi area under Bolangir district, who also owns a company named as Om Organic Private limited (OOPl). Sources said AMMl had business link with OOPl and there were some business conflicts last year.
Hundreds of aggrieved farmers had lodged a FIR in Sundargarh sadar police station in July 2015, alleging that they had been duped to the tune of about Rs4 crore, as they had not received their payment against their cotton supply to AMMl through OOPl. AMMl had been claiming that payment had been made where as OOPl had been claiming that payment had not been received.
According to sources, Pratik is the second son of Pawan Patrodia, a resident of Kolkata. While talking to The Pioneer, Pawan from Kolkata said, “We have not yet got any information about the progress in the investigation. We are worried.”
“We are now investigating into the case from different angles but we have not yet been able to find any positive outcome,” admitted Sundergarh SP Nikhil Kanoria.