Cuttack, Feb. 12: Graphite India Limited has sought intervention of the Supreme Court for a fresh probe into the murder of one its officials at Titilagarh about five years ago. Radhe Shyam Rai, the deputy general manager of its Pomex steel division, was burnt to death by disgruntled workers of his factory in Titilagarh on March 3, 2011.

The company has also sought "retrial" of the case pending before the Court of the Additional Sessions Judge, Titlagarh, and transfer of the trial "to an alternative neutral venue" as 36 of the 40 prosecution witnesses have allegedly turned hostile.

Acting on it, the Supreme Court has issued a stay order on further proceedings in the trial court.

On March 3, 2011, a group of 30 workers of the company had allegedly stopped the vehicle in which Rai was coming out of the factory. They had brought the driver and another employee of the company out of the vehicle before pouring fuel on it and setting it ablaze.

Rai, who was deputy general manager in charge of operations, was occupying the rear seat of the vehicle. Before the staff members could rush to Rai's rescue, he had suffered 70 per cent burn injuries. He had succumbed to his injuries while being shifted from Balangir District Hospital to Ispat General Hospital in Rourkela.

The company has sought fresh probe by an "independent and competent investigation agency", while alleging that the state police had neither arrested the absconding persons nor undertaken effective investigation and prosecution of the accused.

Of the 52 accused who were chargesheeted, 35 are still absconding.