Cuttack: The POCSO court judge in Odisha’s Cuttack, who was found hanging in his official residence here, did not die by suicide but he was murdered by his wife and brother-in-law, his mother alleged Saturday.
In a written complaint lodged at Markat Nagar police station here, Tulasi Behari also claimed that her son, who died on Friday, was mentally and physically tortured by the two persons.
“We have registered an unnatural death case yesterday. An investigation is on and we are taking statements of the judge’s brother, mother and in-laws,” Markat Nagar Police Station Inspector in-charge Beauty Mohanty said.
Subash Kumar Behari, an additional district judge-rank judicial officer who was officiating as a special judge of POCSO court here, was found hanging from a ceiling fan in his quarters here on Friday afternoon. There were injury marks on his neck.
“My son has not committed suicide. He was murdered and later his body was hanged from the ceiling fan,” 75-year-old Tulasi Behera alleged in her complaint and urged the police to thoroughly investigate the matter.
He had taken leave on Friday on account of his father’s death anniversary. His wife and their two daughters were not at home when the incident occurred, police said.
Stating that her son had a love marriage 15 years ago, Tulasi has mentioned in her complaint that her son had on several occasions confided to her that he was mentally and physically tortured by his wife and brother-in-law.
After the post-mortem examination was conducted, the judge’s body was cremated in Puri on Friday night.
There was an altercation between his wife and his brother over where the body would be consigned to flames. His brother wanted to take his mortal remains to their ancestral home in Jajpur district.
Arun Kumar Pahi, a relative of the judge, demanded a CBI probe into the incident.
The judge’s wife refused to comment.
PTI