Police have arrested three men for the brutal murder of a 72-year-old retired school teacher, Basudev Rout, which occurred in May 2025. The arrests were made on Wednesday night in Hatasahi village under the jurisdiction of Rajkanika police station in Odisha’s Kendrapada district.
The accused have been identified as Baidyanath Mallick (68), Ranjit Mallick (22), and Bibhuti Bhusan Nayak (23), all residents of Ahmadpur. The trio had been absconding since the incident, which took place on May 3, 2025.
According to Sanjay Kumar Mallick, Inspector-in-Charge of Rajkanika police station, the motive for the murder is still under investigation. However, the arrests were made after an intelligence tip-off led police to a hideout near Hatasahi village.
The suspects have been booked under Section 103 (Murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). They were produced before a Kendrapada court on Thursday, where their bail pleas were denied. All three have been remanded to judicial custody as the investigation continues.
