Two prisoners escape from Odisha jail while staff, inmates were celebrating Dussehra
Cuttack (PTI): Two undertrial prisoners escaped from the high-security Choudwar circle jail in Odisha’s Cuttack district by scaling the boundary wall while the staff and other inmates were celebrating the Dussehra festival, officials said on Friday.
Two employees of the prison were suspended for dereliction of duty.
The police announced a reward of Rs 50,000 for any information leading to the arrest of the two escapees - Raja Sahani and Madhukanta Kumar, both residents of Bihar.
They were arrested in January on the charge of murdering two persons and looting a jewellery shop in Jajpur district.
Director General (Prisons and Correctional Services) Susanta Kumar Nath visited the jail and reviewed the circumstances under which the inmates escaped when staff and prisoners were celebrating Dussehra on Thursday night.
"On charge of negligence in duty, I have suspended a chief warder and a warder of the jail, and a case has been registered at Choudwar police station. DIG central range has been entrusted with the investigation," Nath told reporters.
Nath said a probe will be conducted to determine whether the escapees had the support of jail staff or from outside.
During the inspection, Nath found that the iron rods of the prisoners’ cells had been cut before they scaled the boundary wall.
"They used a blanket as a rope to climb the wall," a staff said, adding that it was suspected that the duo could manage to escape when the cultural programs were going on in the Choudwar Jail premises on Thursday night for Dussehra.
The Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of Cuttack released the photographs of the prisoners on the run and also announced a reward for their arrest.
“Citizens are requested to provide information on the whereabouts of the accused. Reward: Cash of Rs 50,000 for any information leading to their arrest. Informer's identity will remain confidential,” the officer said in an X post.
A search operation has been on to arrest the prisoners.
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Kolkata Port: Decline in number of voters during SIR brings in uncertainty in TMC bastion
Kolkata (PTI): A sharp decline in the number of voters following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has injected an element of uncertainty into the Kolkata Port Assembly constituency, considered a safe seat for the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC).
The electorate in the south Kolkata constituency has dropped from 2.36 lakh in the 2021 Assembly polls to around 1.75 lakh, a fall of nearly 26 per cent, prompting political parties to closely assess its potential impact on the April 29 polling.
The TMC re-nominated senior minister and Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim, who has held the seat for two consecutive terms, while the BJP fielded Rakesh Singh. The Congress nominated Aquib Gulzar, and the CPI(M) put up Faiyaz Ahmad Khan, making it a four-cornered contest.
Kolkata Port, part of the Kolkata Dakshin parliamentary constituency, comprises dock areas, old business districts and densely populated neighbourhoods. Muslim voters form a significant segment of the electorate, alongside traders, transport workers and working-class Hindu families.
The reduction in voter numbers has prompted party workers across formations to scrutinise the revised rolls booth-wise to identify deletions and assess whether specific localities have been affected.
Singh’s candidature has added a twist to the contest. He had earlier contested against Hakim as a Congress candidate but is now in the fray on a BJP ticket.
Hakim won the seat in 2016 by 26,548 votes, defeating Singh, and increased his margin significantly to 68,554 votes in 2021, polling over one lakh votes.
While the TMC has expressed confidence in retaining the seat, opposition parties have raised concerns over the voter list revision, alleging that names of genuine voters have been removed.
“People here know who has stood by them. Elections are decided by trust,” Hakim told PTI during a campaign event.
Singh claimed several residents had complained about missing names in the rolls, stressing the need for transparency. The CPI(M) nominee also said voters in several areas had raised similar concerns.
The constituency has remained a difficult terrain for the opposition in recent elections.
Civic issues such as sanitation, traffic congestion and declining business activity in traditional markets also feature in the campaign in the constituency, though the revised voter list has emerged as a key talking point.
Polling in the constituency will be held in the second phase on April 29, with counting scheduled for May 4.
