A servitor of the 12th century Shree Jagannath temple in the holy town of Puri was allegedly shot dead by miscreants on Wednesday.
The deceased servitor has been identified as Krushna Chandra Pratihari, 51, a former member of the Jagannath Temple Management Committee. Krushna was gunned down near the jagaa ghara (traditional gymnasium) where he used to go every morning for physical exercise.
Two miscreants came on a motorcycle and opened fire at Krushna, a body builder, from a close range and fled the spot. He was rushed to the hospital where he was declared dead. Police suspect personal enmity to be the motive behind the murder.
Krushna, along with five other people, was acquitted in January 2022 in the murder case of former BJD councilor and Jagannath temple servitor Taluchha Bhagban Mohapatra aka Gunu.
Gunu was murdered in 2012. In the chargesheet of Gunu case, the police had termed Krushna as one of the prime suspects who had hatched a conspiracy and hired goons to eliminate Gunu. However due to lack of evidence, the court acquitted Krushna and other suspects.
Puri superintendent of police Kanwar Vishal Singh said: “We have formed four teams to crack the case and will soon arrest those involved in the crime.”
In another incident of murder on Wednesday, a son hacked his mother to death. Bishnu Prasad Dixit, 38, allegedly attacked his mother, wife and other family members with sharp weapons following a family dispute. The mother died on the spot.
