Tragic Altercation: Migrant Worker Killed Over Bidi Dispute

A 30-year-old migrant worker, Juel Sheikh, was killed in Odisha's Sambalpur following an altercation over a bidi. The incident, involving six suspected attackers, sparked political allegations of targeted violence against Bengalis. Amid the tension, authorities maintain the case is not ethnically motivated.

A 30-year-old migrant worker from West Bengal was tragically killed in Odisha's Sambalpur district after a heated altercation over a bidi, as reported by the police.

Juel Sheikh, who had been working on a construction project in Shanti Nagar within the Ainthapalli police jurisdiction, encountered a group of six individuals on Wednesday evening. An intense dispute arose when the group demanded a bidi, escalating into a physical confrontation.

Sheikh succumbed to severe injuries at a local hospital in Sambalpur. Authorities have arrested all six suspects involved. Political allegations surfaced, with West Bengal's ruling TMC attributing the violence to anti-Bengali sentiment allegedly propagated by the BJP. However, the IGP refuted claims of ethnic motivation behind the crime.