Bhubaneswar, June 30: In a shocking double murder that has stunned Bhubaneswar, police have arrested two minor school students—a Class 10 and a Class 12 student—for allegedly killing a young man and his father at Kolathia under the Khandagiri police station limits. The accused were produced before the Juvenile Justice Board on Tuesday and remanded to juvenile custody.
According to the Commissioner of Police, the two minors had no previous criminal record but had allegedly planned the attack in advance. Preliminary investigation suggests the murders were the outcome of a long-standing dispute linked to a love affair. Police said one of the accused allegedly blamed 20-year-old Krushna Chandra Padhi, a second-year B.Sc student, for harassing a female classmate, leading to a grudge that reportedly continued for nearly a year.
The incident occurred around 2 a.m. on Monday when the masked assailants allegedly scaled the boundary wall of the Padhi family’s rented house along National Highway-16 and entered the premises. Investigators said the attackers dragged Krushna outside and repeatedly assaulted him with iron rods. When his father, Himanshu Padhi (54), a temple priest, and sister Tapasi rushed to save him, they too were brutally attacked. The assailants also reportedly threw chilli powder during the assault before fleeing the scene.
Krushna died on Monday morning, while his father succumbed to injuries at AIIMS Bhubaneswar on Tuesday. Tapasi remains in critical condition and is undergoing treatment.
Police identified the accused after analysing CCTV footage from the area. During the investigation, forensic experts, a dog squad and scientific teams examined the crime scene, while the suspected weapons and other evidence were recovered.
The Padhi family, originally from Sorada in Ganjam district, had been residing in Kolathia for nearly 20 years. The family had also lost Krushna’s mother about a year ago.
Khandagiri police have registered a case and are continuing further investigation to establish the complete sequence of events and determine if anyone else was involved in the conspiracy.
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