9-yr-old Odisha boy killed for 'human sacrifice', 2 held
Bhubaneswar, Oct 20: A nine-year-old boy from Bolangir district, whose decapitated body was found earlier this week, was a victim of human sacrifice, police said Saturday.
Police have arrested two people for their alleged involvement in the brutal killing -- the boy's uncle and brother -- one of whom have confessed to the crime, they said.
Titlagarh Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Saroj Mohapatra said the accused persons had sacrificed the boy to "appease goddess Durga for fulfilment of their wishes".
"We had started investigation suspecting it to be a case of human sacrifice. During interrogation, one of the two accused persons confessed to the crime," Mohapatra told reporters.
The incident took place on October 13 at Sundhimunda village which comes under the jurisdiction of Sindhekela police station in Bolangir district.
The boy, identified as Ghanashyam Rana, went missing the same day and his family members had lodged a complaint with Sindhekela police on October 14.
Mohapatra said police found the decapitated body of the minor boy buried under the sand near Undei river bank on the outskirts of Sundhimunda village on October 18. His head was also traced nearby.
The accused persons have been identified as Kunja Rana, the uncle, and Shobhaban Rana, the brother of the deceased.
Police have seized the knife used in the crime and a motorcycle.
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Allahabad HC orders FIR against Rahul Gandhi in dual citizenship case
Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered an FIR be filed against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in connection with an alleged dual citizenship controversy.
The bench permitted the state government to hand over the probe to any central probe agency after registration of the FIR.
The order was passed by a bench of Justice Subhash Vidyarthi on a petition filed by S Vignesh Shishir, who had challenged a January 28 order of a special MP/MLA court rejecting his plea for an FIR against Gandhi, the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
The special court had earlier held that it was not competent to adjudicate on issues related to citizenship.
The petitioner, a BJP worker from Karnataka, had sought registration of an FIR and a detailed probe into the matter, levelling allegations against Gandhi under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Official Secrets Act, the Foreigners Act and the Passport Act.
The complaint was initially filed before the special MP/MLA court in Rae Bareli. However, on the petitioner's request, the high court transferred the case to Lucknow on December 17, 2025.
The MP/MLA court in Lucknow subsequently dismissed the plea on January 28, 2026, prompting the petitioner to approach the high court, which has now ordered registration of an FIR.
In its order, the bench said that from a bare perusal of the allegations, prima facie cognizable offences were made out against Gandhi and hence the allegations required to be investigated.
The bench said that the special court should have looked into whether the allegations prima facie made out any cognizable offences or not, but it failed to consider it.
Earlier, Deputy Solicitor General of India SB Pandey produced the central government's records in the court relating to the citizenship controversy surrounding Gandhi.
Government counsel VK Singh also consented on behalf of the UP government that the allegations prima facie made out cognizable offences.
After having a detailed hearing, the bench found that the material on records showed that Gandhi had committed "cognizable offences" in having dual citizenship, and these allegations required to be probed.
The petitioner has alleged that Rahul is a UK Citizen and incorporated a company named M/S Backops Ltd in August 2003.
It was further submitted that Gandhi categorically admitted and voluntarily declared his nationality as British, having a Director Identification ID and London and Hampshire addresses.
In his petition, Shishir claimed that Rahul submitted the company's annual returns in October 2005 and October 2006, listing his nationality as British.
Thereafter, the company was dissolved through a dissolution application in February 2009.
According to the petitioner, the material placed before the court includes records suggesting that Rahul Gandhi may have been listed as a voter in the United Kingdom and participated in electoral processes there.
During the course of the hearing, the high court earlier directed the Ministry of Home Affairs to place all relevant records, including classified documents, before the court.
