Odisha blackmailing case: Court rejects ED plea for remand extension of prime accused

The prime accused in a high-profile blackmailing case in Odisha, Archana Nag, was on Monday sent to judicial custody by a local court, which rejected the Enforcement Directorates plea for extension of her remand.

The prime accused in a high-profile blackmailing case in Odisha, Archana Nag, was on Monday sent to judicial custody by a local court, which rejected the Enforcement Directorate's plea for extension of her remand. The ED had prayed for extension of Nag's remand for two more days, stating that she had so far refused to cooperate, and the agency was waiting to get digital evidence against her from the state police.

The probe agency, during the day, produced Nag before the court of additional district judge (ADJ)- III, Bhubaneswar, amid tight security, after having grilled her for 13 days in two phases. Nag's lawyer Thakur Sangram Singh, opposing the ED's plea, argued before the court that she was fully cooperating with the agency. After hearing both sides, the court rejected the ED's petition and sent her to jail at Jharpada in Bhubaneswar. Nag and her husband were arrested in October on charges of amassing properties worth over Rs 30 crore in a span of only four years from 2018.

The 26-year-old woman allegedly blackmailed rich and influential people, including politicians, by threatening to make public the photos and videos of their intimate moments.

The ED, which is looking into the money laundering aspect of the case, has also nabbed the couple's alleged close associate Khageswar Patra. Ten people have been interrogated by the ED in connection with the case thus far. AAM RMS RMS