Bhubaneswar: BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Monday suspended former MLA Nabin Nanda from the party following his arrest during a raid at a Kolkata spa where a sex racket was being run.
BJD has suspended Nanda in connection with a “condemnable” incident in Kolkata, BJD secretary Bijay Nayak said in a press statement.
Nanda was reportedly arrested Saturday from a brothel in Kolkata’s Park Street area. The arrested people included nine sex workers, three customers including Nanda and the manager of the brothel, an officer said. Nanda was granted bail Sunday.
The former MLA of Dhenkanal has admitted to have been arrested by the police but said it was a “conspiracy against me.”
“I had gone out for shopping around 7 pm Saturday when my mobile phone and wallet were pick-pocketed. I chased the man and he ran into the spa. After I followed him into the spa, police caught me on the suspicion that I was a customer. As I had no mobile phone then, I could not contact my family members,” he told media in Kolkata. Claiming that he had “no intention” of visiting the spa, Nanda said he will take legal recourse against his arrest. His counsel Ashwini Kumar told media from Kolkata that the court has granted him bail.
Sources in Nanda’s family said he had gone to Kolkata Thursday and was set to return Sunday. He was in touch with his family members till Friday. But they could not contact him Saturday as his mobile phone was switched off. Since Nanda did not return Sunday morning, his son flew to Kolkata in the afternoon and filed a complaint with the Shakespeare Sarani police station. Nanda was later traced, they added.
BJD spokesperson Samir Das said, It is really a shameful incident. Nabin Nanda himself stated that he was not with the BJD earlier. Therefore, there is no reason why BJD should speak for him. Stating that this is an unfortunate and shameful incident, Congress leader Taraprasad Bahinipati said, a legislator should not be involved in such activities. BJP MLA Pradeep Purohit said this is a shameful incident for Odisha. Naveen Patnaik should put brakes on such leaders.