Missing Pen Drive Claim Adds Twist To Pitabas Panda Murder Case

Bhubaneswar: Fresh controversy has surfaced in the murder case of BJP leader and advocate Pitabas Panda after a defence counsel alleged that key digital evidence cited in the chargesheet has not been produced before the court.

Advocate Deepak Pattnaik, representing accused Bikram Panda, claimed that investigators had recovered a pen drive containing objectionable photographs from a concealed chamber inside the deceased leader’s Berhampur residence, but the material has not been presented as evidence during court proceedings.

According to Pattnaik, a key to the chamber was allegedly found tied to Pitabas Panda’s sacred thread during the investigation following his death. Police later opened the chamber in the presence of his wife, Sushmita, and recovered the pen drive, he said.

The defence lawyer alleged that the storage device contained four photographs purportedly showing his client with a woman. He questioned why, despite references to the material in the chargesheet, it has not been formally submitted before the court.

“Even though the recovery of the pen drive and its contents are mentioned in the chargesheet, the same has not been produced before the court,” Pattnaik told reporters, calling for clarification from the investigating agency.

There was no immediate response from the police or members of Pitabas Panda’s family to the allegations. Officials have also not publicly confirmed the status of the purported digital evidence.

The claims have added a new layer of complexity to the high-profile murder investigation, which has already drawn significant public attention.