Bhubaneswar, Jan 8: A middle-aged man was on Wednesday hacked to death by a group of miscreants in broad daylight in the state capital here which is under a thick security blanket for the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention, police said.
The incident took place at around 8 am on Rasulgarh Road Over Bridge (ROB) in the city. He was intercepted by the miscreants while riding a two-wheeler from Rasulgarh towards Vani Vihar on NH-16, they said.
The deceased was identified as Sahadev Nayak, a resident of Kedarpalli area. He was a trade union leader and working as a supervisor of sanitation workers. Nayak's family members claimed he was murdered as he was strongly opposed to the drug trade in the city.
Bhubaneswar DCP Pinak Mishra said that the police have so far detained three people in this connection. "We have taken the matter seriously and the police have formed three special teams to nab the culprits. Scientific teams are engaged in the investigation," the DCP said.
Asked regarding the family's allegation of the drugs trade angle, the DCP said: "We are investigating all the angles of the murder. The motive behind the crime appeared to be personal enmity."
"Some unknown miscreants attacked Nayak this morning. We are reviewing CCTV footage to identify the perpetrators," said Mancheswar police station Inspector-in-charge Mrutyunjay Swain.
