2 men arrested for friend’s murder

Balangir: Two men were arrested on Wednesday for allegedly murdering their friend and attempting to stage it as a suicide by placing his body on railway tracks at Deogaon in Balangir district.The accused duo was identified as Kshetramani Senapati (28) and Aman Sagar Nanda (25). They killed the 26-year-old Bulu Bag, whose mutilated body was found on Tuesday. All three friends were unemployed and came from a family of farmers."It was initially a blind case as the deceased's identity was unknown. The breakthrough came through social media analysis where we identified him from a local sarpanch's WhatsApp group," Himanshu Lal, inspector general (northern range), said.According to the police, Bag had visited Deogaon on Tuesday morning to repair his mobile phone when he met his two friends. The trio decided to consume alcohol near the railway tracks. The situation turned violent when Bag allegedly made offensive remarks about Nanda's mother, leading to a heated argument. The two reportedly struck Bag with a stone, killing him instantly."To conceal their crime, the perpetrators removed the victim's shirt and placed his body on the railway tracks to make it appear as a suicide," a police official said. The subsequent passing of a train severely mutilated the body, complicating identification efforts.A specialized team, including scientific and cyber units, was formed under the supervision of Balangir SP. Police have recovered crucial evidence, including the blood-stained clothes of both the victim and one of the accused, along with the murder weapon.The accused have been taken into custody and further investigation is ongoing.