Bolangir: Taking a leaf from the demolition of illegal properties of criminals in Uttar Pradesh (UP) by bulldozers as well as to instill a sense of fear among them and maintain law and order, the district police here have adopted a similar approach to crack down on habitual offenders. The bulldozer campaign, which started in UP and turned into a trend, has now started spreading its roots in this western town. With the launch of ‘Mission Bulldozer’ the district police in Bolangir have adopted the bulldozer as their latest artillery to instill fear of law among the history sheeters.
The campaign, which started Monday, entered its fourth day as police officials demolished the Rajivnagarpada residence of accused Sripati Singh in the presence of a magistrate, Thursday. Directed by SP Nitin Kushalkar, a police team led by additional superintendent of police Suresh Nayak, SDPO Tophan Bag, Town police station IIC Priyanka Routray arrived at Rajivnagarpada, Thursday. The demolition of the house was carried out after tehsildar Pushpanjali Panda, who was officiating as the magistrate, reviewed the situation and issued orders in this regard.
Earlier, the police team had demolished the houses of Tejraj Nanda, Niroj Harpal, and Sanjay Tandi at Malgodownpada. Tuesday, the police team demolished Hotel Gajapati located along Dhumamara-Bolangir-Patnagarh State Highway-42. The hotel was serving as an illegal den of serial offender Bablu Mahananda. The team had demolished the crime den of serial offender Sripati Singh at RTO Office Square. When contacted, SP Nitin Kushalkar said that the campaign will continue until the offenders refrain from criminal activities and live like common men in society. He said that no person responsible will be spared for any breach of law and order in Bolangir town.
Notably, an uptick in criminal activities and deterioration in the law and order situation in Bolangir during the last few months had sparked sharp resentment among the town residents. Things had come to such a pass that people started questioning the police raising doubts about their efficiency