Mallick named conspirator in acid attack case

BHUBANESWAR: The Commissionerate Police on Thursday took Khirod Mallick, who runs an NGO Biswa and happens to be brother of a former BJD Minister, by surprise when it submitted before a local court that Mallick is one of the conspirators in an acid attack incident that took place in the City last year.Mallick had earlier applied for anticipatory bail in connection with a firing incident  before the Orissa High Court which had directed him to move the Sub- Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM) Court and seek relief. He appeared before the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) Srotaswini Kar, who is the in-charge SDJM.While the court granted him bail in the firing incident, the City police made a submission stating Mallick’s alleged involvement as a conspirator in an acid attack case. In fact, the case was registered under Section 324 of Indian Penal Code and was a bailable offence.However, the police prayed that the charge be upgraded to Section 307 of the IPC. The magistrate did not grant him bail in the second case and Mallick was remanded in judicial custody.Mallick’s counsel Dharanidhar Nayak, who confirmed that police pressed charges under Section 307 of the IPC, said a fresh bail application would be moved before the district and sessions court on Friday.In fact, Mallick’s name had cropped up during police investigation in connection with the April 13 firing on Namita Rani Padhi, a call centre employee, in Mancheswar Industrial Estate. However, he was not named in the case though his driver had been arrested, besides four others. He had applied for anticipatory bail after the incident.Brother of former Minister Pramila Mallick, police have mentioned Mallick as a conspirator in connection with the acid attack on one Amareswar Mishra of GGP Colony in November last year. Mishra, interestingly, happens to be the father of the Namita’s brother-in-law Sanjay Mishra.Sanjay who is married to Namita’s elder sister Kabita was shot at by miscreants last year. While police could not nab the main culprit, Amareswar was persistent in his effort to seek justice.