Bhubaneswar, June 2: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has stepped up its investigation into the Balianta mob violence case that resulted in the death of Government Railway Police (GRP) constable Soumya Ranjan Swain, as a two-member inquiry team continued its field probe in Odisha.
On Wednesday, the NHRC panel recorded the statements of two crucial witnesses—the woman whose complaint allegedly triggered the chain of events leading to the mob attack and the ambulance driver who responded to an emergency call from the incident site. Both appeared before the commission after receiving official notices.
During his deposition, 108 ambulance service driver Sugyan Mallick stated that his team received a call at 11:06 am reporting an accident at Ramchandrapur in Balianta. According to him, the ambulance reached the location at around 11:34 am. However, upon contacting the caller, the team was informed that the injured person had already been shifted from the spot in a private vehicle. Consequently, the ambulance returned to the Adaspur Community Health Centre without transporting any patient.
The NHRC team arrived in Bhubaneswar on June 1 and has been conducting an extensive on-ground inquiry into the incident. The commission is scheduled to continue its investigation in Odisha until June 6.
Sources said the panel is examining multiple aspects of the case, including the circumstances that led to the mob assault, the sequence of events before and after the violence, the response of emergency services, and allegations of police negligence.
The findings of the NHRC inquiry are expected to play a significant role in establishing accountability and determining whether any violations of human rights occurred in the handling of the incident.
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