The Congress students’ wing on Wednesday alleged that Biju Yuva Janata Dal (BYJD) president and MlA Byomakesh Ray has links with arrested criminal brothers Sushil and Sushant Dhalsamant and demanded his arrest.
The student leaders threatened to gherao the Commissionerate Police headquarters here on April 9 if the police fail to nab the Chandbali MlA. Maintaining that Ray had links with the dreaded criminal siblings even before he was elected as president of the ruling party’s students’ wing, Student Congress member Manoj Biswal said the MlA was associated with the duo much before the 2014 general election.
“It is a fact that the Dhalsamant brothers had made funding for Ray through Cuttack Municipal Corporation Deputy Mayor Ajay Barik in the 2014 elections,” Biswal told reporters.
He said since Barik was quizzed by Police in this connection, the MlA must be interrogated. Arguing that there was sufficient proof to bring Ray under the purview of the investigation, he said in 2013, Ray was using a Scorpio vehicle (OD-05-0001), which was registered in the name of Barik.
“After the election too, the MlA continued to use the vehicle for official purposes. It exposes their (Barik-Ray) closeness,” Biswal added.
“We ask the police to arrest Ray within 48 hours, failing which a large number of students will gherao the Commissionerate Police headquarters,” warned the Student Congress leader.
Meanwhile, the MlA refuted the allegations, saying he had no links with D brothers.
“The Chhatra Congress member who has levelled the baseless allegations against me belongs to my constituency. I want to clarify that I have never seen the D brothers,” said Ray in a press release.
“So far as my link with Ajay Barik is concerned, Ray said, “Ajay Barik is an active member of our party and is the CMC Deputy Mayor and Cuttack Urban Co-operative Bank Director and Private Bus Owners’ Association secretary. It has not yet been proved whether he had links with the Dhalsamant brothers. He was once interrogated in connection with a matter related to collection of parking fee at the Badambadi bus-stand. So far as my involvement is concerned, neither I have seen the D brothers nor do I know them.”
However the MlA admitted that prior to the general elections, he was using Barik’s Scorpio vehicle in 2013.