Former Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA Devendra Kanhar arrested on sexual harassment charges

A former Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA was arrested on Monday on charges of assaulting a woman and her mother in Kandhamal district, police said here.

Devendra Kanhar was arrested from Andhra Pradesh on the basis of an FIR lodged by the woman at Phulbani Sadar police station on September 2, Superintendent of Police of Kandhamal, Prateek Singh, said.

When produced before a court here, the former Phulbani MLA was remanded to 14 days judicial custody. Kanhar, however, denied the allegation and claimed that he had surrendered and was not absconding.

In the FIR, the woman accused Kanhar of physically assaulting her and her mother at Goudasahi in Phulbani town, Singh said.

The incident could have happened owing to some personal rivalry, the police officer said. A sex video purportedly featuring Kanhar had also gone viral on social media around the same time, making the entire episode more controversial.