Former hockey captain Birendra Lakra under investigation for murder case

The former skipper of the Indian hockey team who is also a renowned bronze medalist olympian, Birendra Lakra finds himself in hot water as the Orissa High Court has initiated legal action against him. As per the details, the court has ordered a thorough investigation of the suspicious death of his friend.

The incident took place back in 2022 when Anand Toppo, a friend of the ex-hockey captain, was found dead in a perplexing situation. According to the High Court's judgment which was released on February 28, 2022, the father of the deceased, Bandhna Toppo received a distressing call from Birendra Lakra.

As per the call, the medalist told Anand's father that he was found in critical condition and had been rushed to the capital hospital. Notably, he was accompanied by a women-owned ambulance named Majneet Tete. In an unfortunate turn of events, the doctor declared Anand dead upon attending him on arrival.

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Anand's father took legal action against Birendra Lakra

Doubting the nature of Anand's demise, his father lodged a complaint at the Infocity police station. Nevertheless, his complaint was taken for granted because of an existing first report, claiming the case as suicide. Despite repeated efforts, the Bhubaneswar police denied acknowledging any suspicion of foul play in Anand's death.

Consequently, Anand's father adhered to legal alternatives against Birendra Lakra, finally leading to the registration of a case. As per the documents from the courts dating back to December 15, 2022, the investigating officer received the intestines chemical report. That report disclosed the existence of ethyl alcohol and different drugs in Anand's body.

The judgment of a doctor at AIIMS, Bhubaneswar, assured that the wound on the deceased's neck occurred before death. Later, on February 7, 2023, a final report was presented commenting that there was no prima facie proof to defend a murder case.

The argument presented by Shivsankar Mohanty, who was the lawyer for the deceased's father, argues that Birendra Lakra, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, purposely submitted a conclusive report portraying the death as a suicide, although there was clear proof of foul play in Anand's death.

Furthermore, It was argued that the indicted people tried to hide the fact that Anand had been antagonized by alcohol, which caused his demise. Despite all the pieces of evidence available, the judge of the Orissa High Court remarked the case was of 'suicidal hanging' and nothing else.

The order says:

“It is also borne out from the case record that Birendra Lakra is a high-ranking police officer belonging to the grade of DSP. The petitioner’s allegation that the investigation was biased or in any case not impartial appears to be reasonable in the facts and circumstances of the case."

"Therefore, directing the same agency (police) to reinvestigate would not be proper. Rather for the ends of justice, it would be proper for an independent agency like the Crime Branch to do so.”