Berhampur: Maoist leader Sabyasachi Panda and leader of Daman Pratirodha Manch Dandapani Mohanty who were jailed on charges of sedition were acquitted by the Additional District Sessions Judge Wednesday.
Pradip Mallick, sarpanch of Hatimunda panchayat in Kandhamal district, was arrested July 12, 2011, when he was on his way to Dandapani’s house in Shantinagar near Baidyanathpur to deliver a letter from Sabyasachi on the movement of the outlawed CPI (Maoist) organisation.
Following Pradip’s arrest and seizure of the letter, police registered a case against Dandapani and Sabyasachi. Police then arrested both of them and forwarded to court.
Finding lack of evidence, Justice Sanjay Kumar Sahoo acquitted Dandapani and Sabyasachi.
The court had earlier lifted all other sections under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against the accused persons.
The hearing was conducted on the basis of Section 124 (A) of the IPC.
While Sabyasachi has been acquitted in 41 cases out of 134 cases registered, Dandapani was acquitted in 22 cases out of total 25 cases, it is learnt.