Bhubaneswar, July 31: Two youths were beaten by a man with a wooden plank leaving one dead at Nayapalli.

Police said the victims, identified as Basant Pradhan, 24, and Lambodara Sahu, 30, both daily wage labourers, were rushed to Capital Hospital. While Pradhan was declared brought dead, Sahu was later shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital.

Eyewitnesses said the incident took place around 11.30pm last night when they spotted two youths lying on the road with severe injury. "Both of them were lying unconscious. We called the police, who shifted them to hospital," said an eyewitness.

Though the motive behind the crime is yet to be ascertained, the police suspect past rivalry to be the reason.

A closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera installed in a nearby ladies' hostel revealed that a person had suddenly launched attack on the duo with a wooden plank. "The attacker hit their heads several times with the plank," said an eyewitness.

The police said the accused had been identified, but did not disclose his identity for the sake of investigation. "The accused had a quarrel with the victims a few months ago. We are also trying to ascertain whether the accused killed the victim out of provocation," said a police official.

Deputy commissioner of police Satyabrata Bhoi said they were examining the CCTV footage. "We will record Sahu's statement to find out the motive," said Bhoi.

Local residents put the blame on poor night patrolling. "Our area has recently been witnessing frequent crimes, especially loots and robberies. This is the second incident of murder in the area in one month, that too, on the main road," said Nayapalli resident Arun Jena.