Bhubaneswar, Jun 11: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday accused the previous Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government in Odisha of deliberately concealing two crucial inquiry commission reports that have gone missing from the Chief Minister’s Office. The allegations follow the registration of an FIR at Capital Police Station in Bhubaneswar over the disappearance of the documents.

Revenue Minister Suresh Pujari told reporters that after the new BJP government assumed office, officials began reviewing reports of various inquiry commissions. During this process, they discovered that two key documents — the Justice A.S. Naidu Commission report on the 2008 killing of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and his disciples at Jaleshpeta Ashram, and the RDC inquiry report on the 2016 SUM Hospital fire tragedy — were missing from official records.

Pujari alleged that the files were neither returned to the Home Department nor handed over to the new government, which is the standard administrative procedure during a regime change. He further claimed that the then Home Secretary had written multiple times to the former Chief Minister, now Leader of Opposition, Naveen Patnaik requesting the return of the reports. While assurances were given, the files were never traced.

“After a long wait, the government felt there was little chance of the files being returned. These were not misplaced accidentally but deliberately concealed. They might have put the then government in the dock,” Pujari said.
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The Odisha Home Department has now sought a police investigation into the matter. A complaint filed by Joint Secretary Sarat Chandra Marandi said that the reports were untraceable, prompting the FIR. The case (460/26) was lodged on Wednesday.

Minister Pujari expressed hope that a proper investigation would lead to the recovery of the missing documents, which he described as vital for accountability and transparency. The BJP has mounted a sharp attack on the BJD, alleging that the disappearance of the reports reflects attempts to suppress findings that could have been politically damaging.