Paralakhemundi: A scientific team Friday conducted a detailed scrutiny of the house where Paralakhemundi assistant conservator of forest (ACF) Soumya Ranjan Mahapatra had died after being burnt. However, the team found no evidence of any fire mishap at the house, a source said.
According to the source, a team of police and scientific officials carried out a scrutiny of the house Friday afternoon in presence of the deceased ACF’s father Abhiram Mahapatra and other family members. No such evidence, whatsoever, could be detected to establish that the forest official had sustained burn injuries on the intervening day.
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The scientific team only found smoky smell inside Soumya’s bedroom. There were no traces of inflammable objects that possibly could have caused the fire mishap, in which the ACF is said to have died, an official said.
Besides, no sign of any damage caused to items such as plastic articles and paper documents owing to inferno could be seen.
Additional SP Bamadev Singh, who was in the investigating team, refused to provide any detailed information about the incident.
Meanwhile, Gajapati DFO Sangarm Keshari Behera — one of the suspects in the mysterious death — is expected to be questioned within a couple of days.
Notably, police booked the deceased’s wife Bidya Bharati Panda July 15, including the DFO and cook in connection with the alleged murder.
Father of the deceased official had earlier accused Soumya’s wife and the senior forest official of killing the ACF over some issue.
PNN