Overview
- A video that circulated widely showed a man and a woman being dragged from a motorcycle and beaten with sticks on Giri Road in Berhampur, an attack that police say took place on Monday, May 18.
- The footage provoked public outrage and political criticism of the state government, with the victim’s mother filing an FIR naming five suspects and opposition leaders citing failures on public safety.
- Police arrested two men soon after the video surfaced and then took three more into custody this week as they hunted remaining suspects, bringing the number in custody to four.
- During a late-night operation to trace an absconding suspect, police say Mufates Sahu alias Mukesh grabbed an assistant sub-inspector’s service revolver and fired, and officers returned fire; Mukesh was wounded and admitted to MKCG Medical College and has not yet been formally produced before a magistrate because he is under treatment.
- Authorities say Mukesh faces multiple pending criminal cases and describe the operation as a warning to criminals, while investigators continue raids, victims receive medical care, and the next steps include formal charges and magistrate production once the injured suspect is fit.