Orissa orders crime branch probe into Bolangir violence

Bhubaneswar, Oct 30: Five days after ordering a judicial probe into the death of two engineering students in Bolangir district and the violence that followed, the Orissa government Friday ordered a crime branch probe, an official said.

"The crime branch will probe the incident. We have formed a four member team, headed by a DSP ranked officer," said Arun Ray, the Inspector General of crime branch, in a press conference.

The crime branch would probe the circumstances that led to the clashes following the death of an engineering student after being hit by a police vehicle. Another student succumbed to 'baton charge' by police during the violence that followed.

The death sparked violence in Bolangir. The student wing of the Congress called a bandh on Oct 26, bringing entire western Orissa to a grinding halt.

The stage government ordered a judicial inquiry into the case on Oct 25. The state government has named retired hight court judge S.K. Mohanty to probe the incident.

--IANS