Minister murder: BJP MLAs meet Odisha Governor, claim 'lawlessness'

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], March 6 (ANI): BJP legislators, led by Leader of Opposition (LoP) Jayanarayan Mishra, met Odisha Governor, Professor Ganeshi Lal, on Monday and submitted a memorandum against the state government over alleged lawlessness.
The visit by the BJP leaders to the Governor followed violent protests in Bhubaneswar against the daylight killing of former Odisha minister Naba Kisore Das.
The protestors railed against Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, alleging 'deteriorating' law and order in the eastern state.
Invoking the murder of Naba Kisore Das, LoP Jayanarayan Mishra said, "It's been a month since Health minister Naba Kishore Das was shot dead in broad daylight and the Crime Branch, which is probing the case, is still clueless. We are firm on our demand for a CBI inquiry into the minister's murder. We have no faith in the ongoing investigation by the CBI."
"It's unfortunate that Odisha reported 1,379 murders and 3,184 rape cases in 2022 alone. Crimes against women are on the rise across the state with every passing day. Such is the state of affairs that women feel unsafe to step out at night," LoP Mishra added.
Earlier, on February 28, Opposition leaders and workers took out a protest claiming a sharp decline in the state's law-and-order situation.
Naba Kishore Das was shot at by a policeman in Brajarajnagar in the Jharsuguda district on January 29 and succumbed to his injuries at a Bhubaneswar hospital on the same day.
Thousands of BJP Yuva Morcha supporters, led by the BJP youthwing's president in Odisha, Irasis Acharya, marched towards the Assembly during a mega rally against the alleged lawlessness in the state.
A few police personnel and some BJP workers sustained injuries as the two sides came to blows.
The national general secretary of the BJP Yuva Morcha, Rohit Chahal, told ANI that law and order have collapsed in the state.
"Law and order have totally collapsed in the state. People are sick of the lawlessness in Odisha. We want to ask why the CM is silent on the Naba Das murder case. Why is the investigation not being done into the matter? We won't sit silently," he said.
Hitting out at CM Naveen Patnaik, he said, "We want to ask the CM who is running the government? The Assembly is in session and he (CM) is visiting Mumbai." (ANI)