Bhubaneswar: Former Gajapati divisional forest officer (DFO) Sangram Keshari Behera was suspended in connection with the high-profile death of assistant conservator of forests (ACF) Soumya Ranjan Mohapatra in 2021.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has directed the suspension of Behera who is currently serving as director (Commercial) of the Odisha Forest Development Corporation (OFDC).
Behera is behind the bars since Monday after he surrendered before the SDJM court at Paralakhemundi on Monday. He surrendered in the court following a series of legal setbacks, including the issuance of non-bailable warrants.
The case pertains to July 11, 2021, when 2020-batch OFS officer Soumya Ranjan suffered nearly 80 per cent burn injuries under mysterious circumstances at his official residence in Paralakhemundi. He was first treated at government hospitals in Berhampur and Cuttack, and later shifted to a private hospital where he succumbed.
The death sparked widespread outrage across Odisha. On July 14, 2021, the officer’s family filed a complaint alleging murder and named the then Gajapati DFO Behera, Soumya’s wife Bidya Bharati Panda, and cook Manmath Kumbha as accused.In view of the sensitivity of the case, the state government transferred the investigation to the CID Crime Branch in August 2021.
