A day after fast-food vendor Ramesh Sahoo was stabbed to death in the crowded Dharmasala area under Darghabazaar Police limits on Saturday evening, police have arrested the alleged assailant Lokanath Mohapatra and his accomplice Babuni alias Amarjit Singh.
Lokanath and Babuni were tracked down to a village near Barang where they had gone into hiding while the former’s brother and another accomplice in the murder Nini Mohapatra is still at large.
According to police, Ramesh was not killed on the spur of the moment following a collision between his trolley and the mini pick-up van of Mohapatra. Mohapatra had allegedly stabbed Sahoo as per plan, with the help of Babuni and brother Nini.
Ramesh, who was coming to set his trolley on the entrance road of the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Memorial Museum, hit the flower van of Lokanath Mohapatra near Kathgada Sahi at around 4 pm. Both had engaged in an altercation, but were separated by the locals.
Once Ramesh came to set his shop up, he and his brother Ganesh Sahoo went to Mohapatra’s shop ‘Chandan Pushpalaya’ and confronted him over the issue. They were brought apart again by the local businessmen.
A little later, Lokanath and Babuni went to Ramesh and allegedly threatened him. The fellow vendors intervened to resolve the matter and persuaded the Sahoo brothers to apologise. Both did so and Mohapatra left.
However, at around 6 pm, Lokanath’s brother Nini came to Ramesh and asked the latter to accompany him to the former for a compromise. After initial reluctance, Ramesh went to Dharmasala Chhak where Lokanath was allegedly lying in wait well prepared.
He allegedly whipped out a knife and stabbed Ramesh in the middle of the busy evening road in the presence of Babuni and Nini. As Ramesh fell down, the three allegedly fled the spot. Ramesh was rushed to the SCB Medical College where he succumbed, police said.
As tension continues to simmer in the Darghabazaar area over the issue, armed police have been deployed to prevent any flare-up.
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