Berhampur/Bhubaneswar, Aug. 22: Police in Paralakhemundi had pinned much hope on the quick recovery of deceased Ananga Manjari Patra's younger brother Santosh, who was battling for his life at MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur, to crack the Gajapati Palace intrigue. Their hope suffered a blow with the death of Santosh this evening.
A scandal fuelled by suspected suicides, political connections and dramatic dismissals by Gopinath Gajapati from his faraway hospital bed exploded yesterday on the Gajapati Palace, which was once the hub of the freedom movement and home to the first Prime Minister of Odisha.
The immediate flashpoint was the discovery of the bodies of the former manager of the Gajapati Palace, Ananga Manjari Patra, her sister Bijayalaxmi Patra and brother Sanjaya Patra from their Jangam Sahi residence located 500 metres from the Paralakhemundi palace yesterday afternoon.
All three were unmarried siblings aged between 35 and 54.
The suspected suicide by Ananga and her siblings has further deepened the mystery surrounding the palace. The state government moved in fast by ordering a crime branch inquiry into the deaths and the circumstances leading to the incident.
The crime branch has formed a six-member special investigation team on a day the police claimed to have recovered three suicide notes from under the pillow of Ananga. The cops also claimed to have found a blank diary from Ananga's house, but some of its pages were torn off.
Police chief of Gajapati district Sushil Panigrahi admitted that they had found the suicide notes but refused to share further details "for the sake of investigation". He also refused to comment on the torn pages of the diary.
Panigrahi said four cases had been registered at Paralakhemundi police station. One of the cases deals with alleged misappropriation of palace properties by the late Ananga and the late Sanjaya, who had worked as personal assistant to the Gajapati. Three cases relate to the deaths of Ananga, her sister Bijayalaxmi and brother Sanjaya, he said.
The Gajapati, who is undergoing treatment in Chennai, had appointed Ananga as his personal assistant during his tenure as Congress MP from 1988 to 1996.
Controversy refuses to leave Ananga even after her death. Paralakhemundi MLA K. Surya Rao, who had last week staged dharna to demand action against Ananga and her brother Sanjaya, today claimed that the Gajapati's former manager and her family members were trying to sell off palace properties.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Rao said: "The alleged suicide by the former manager and her siblings in a way proved their guilt. Why did they commit suicide if they were not guilty?"
Countering Rao's accusations, Ananga's elder brother Amulya Patra accused the MLA of conspiring to tarnish the image of his sister and joining hands with Jagannath Gajapati, the younger brother of Gopinath Gajapati, to capture royal properties.
He also levelled similar charges against former Gajapati district unit BJD president Basant Das, his son Debi Prasad Das and Paralakhemundi Town Congress president Basant Panda.
"I am going to lodge a case against these leaders for being responsible for the death of my sisters and brothers," he said.
Speaking to The Telegraph, eminent lawyer L.K. Adhikari, who had represented Gopinath Gajapati in the past, said the former Paralakhemundi king (though no such official title exists in the country now) was locked in a property dispute with his brother and a case in this connection had been going on since 2006.
However, he said, that the Paralakhemundi subordinate judge court in 2010 had passed an interim order stopping anyone from alienating or selling off the royal properties.
"To the best of my knowledge, no immovable royal property has been sold since then. I can't comment on other properties," Adhikari said.
Adhikari's statement appears to lend credence to the contention of Ananga's family that she was hounded by a coterie with vested interests, subjected to media trial and pronounced guilty without being given a chance to defend her.
Paralakhemundi sub-collector Anam Charan Patra said: "Gopinath Gajapati's daughter Kalyani Devi is in constant touch with the district administration. Jagannath Gajapati and his wife Sailaja Devi have not contacted us."
