The death of a youth here in police custody under mysterious circumstances has led to a flutter in Kandhamal district. While the police claimed that Pratap Pradhan, who was in custody of the Sadar police here, died due to illness, the people in the area believe he was beaten to death in the police station.
When asked, DIG (Southern Range) Amitav Thakur, who is presently camping in Kandhamal, said the police had information that some youths posing as Maoists were engaged in extortion on the Kalinga Ghats. A special squad of the police had nabbed Pratap from the spot at around 4 pm while his two accomplices managed to escape. The police rook Pratap to the places where he had extorted money. But all of a sudden, Pratap fell ill and was admitted to the District Headquarters Hospital at around 8 pm and died while undergoing treatment at the hospital. Thakur said the police are collecting more information about Pratap and the circumstances under which he died.