Odisha

Bhubaneswar, Apr 28 (PTI) As many as 332 candidates for the ongoing Odisha Assembly elections have criminal cases against them, while 257 aspirants are facing cases of serious offences, a report by Odisha Election Watch and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) said on Sunday.

While seven candidates have declared convicted cases against themselves, nine aspirants have declared cases related to murder, 63 attempt to murder, 17 kidnapping and 63 crimes against women, it said.

Baripada (Odisha), Apr 24 (PTI) A local court Wednesday sentenced a man to 20 years' rigorous imprisonment (RI) for raping a girl in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha four years ago.

Additional district and sessions judge of Baripada, Dr V Sujata, passed the verdict after finding Bailochan Mohanta guilty of raping the girl.

Mohanta's two associates, Purusattam Mohanta and Bailochan Behera, were awarded three years' RI by the judge.

Bhubaneswar, Apr 20 (PTI) Odisha chief electoral officer Surendra Kumar has suspended 14 government officers for dereliction of duty in the second phase of polling on April 18 and recommended fresh polling at a booth in Sorada assembly segment in Ganjam district.

Kumar said the 14 officers were deployed in five Lok Sabha and 35 assembly constituencies amd were suspended on charges of dereliction of duty during the simultaneous polls.

Phulbani (Odisha), Apr 17 (PTI) Maoists gunned down a woman polling officer in Kandhamal district of Odisha Wednesday when she was taking a team of poll personnel to a booth on the eve of second phase election, police said.

Sector Officer Sanjukta Digal was shot dead when she got down from the vehicle to check a suspicious object lying on the road while passing through a jungle, DGP B K Sharma told PTI.

Other polling personnel were in the vehicle and were unhurt.

Bhubaneswar, Apr 17 (PTI) The Election Commission Wednesday suspended an officer posted as general observer in Odisha for allegedly checking Prime Minister Narendra Modi's helicopter in Sambalpur in violation of norms.

Mohammed Mohsin, a 1996-batch Karnataka cadre IAS officer, has not acted in conformity with the EC's instructions concerning Special Protection Group (SPG) protectees, according to an order issued by the commission.

Phulbani, Mar 13 (PTI) A woman Maoist was killed in an encounter with security forces in a forest in Odisha's Kandhamal district on Wednesday, police said.

The gun battle took place after Special Operations Group (SOG) and District Voluntary Force (DVF) personnel launched a joint operation in Sirla forest following a tip-off, Kandhamal, Superintendent of Police, Prateek Singh told reporters here.

Baripada (Odisha), Mar 10 (PTI) The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Sunday announced it will contest the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in Odisha in alliance with the Congress.

JMM supremo Sibu Soren's daughter Anjani will contest from Mayurbhanj Lok Sabha constituency, the party's Central Working President Hemant Soren said.

The candidature of Anjani, Hemant Soren's sister, has been finalised from Mayurbhanj.

Jeypore (Odisha), Mar 8 (PTI) Sharpening his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale deal, Congress president Rahul Gandhi Friday accused him of having prepared the new contract for purchase of fighter jets from France, sidlining the official negotiating team in order to benefit Anil Ambani.

Gandhi, who addressed a Congress rally and interacted with women on the International Women's Day here, said public sector Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), which produces fighter aircraft, was ignored by Modi in Rafale deal.

Bhubaneswar, Mar 7 (PTI) With many senior Congress leaders in Odisha seeking additional tickets for their family members in the forthcoming Lok Sabha and assembly elections, state in-charge Jitendra Singh Thursday said the party will strictly follow 'one family, one ticket' policy.

The state and national elections are expected to take place simultaneously.

Berhampur (Odisha), Mar 1 (PTI) A 45-year-old man was arrested Friday for allegedly raping his 13-year-old daughter repeatedly for a month in Ganjam district of Odisha, police said.

The man was arrested on the basis of a complaint lodged by the victim, a student of class 8, on Thursday, Inspector-In-Charge of Bhanjanagar Police Station S K Sahu said.

The accused was booked under various sections of the IPC and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.