Police arrest marathon boy Budhia's coach

The Orissa police on Monday arrested marathon wonder kid Budhia Singh's coach.

Budhia on Sunday accused his mentor Biranchi Das of physically torturing him.

"Sir has been beating me since a long time and did not feed me properly," Budhia told a local TV channel in Bhubaneshwar.

Das, however, had denied the charges. "The charges against me are baseless," he told PTI.

"Some people have instigated Budhia's mother against me," he alleged while confirming that she had taken the boy away from the Judo association hall where he lived with Das and was training.

Claiming that he had picked up Budhia from a slum and made him a celebrity, Das said "can you believe I can torture the boy whom I have been trying to build up?"     

Meanwhile, Budhia's mother Sukanti Singh told reporters that she would not allow her son to stay with Biranchi any more. "As soon as I came to know about the matter, I took him away," she said.

Sukanti, along with Budhia, has taken shelter at a house in Salia Sahi slum in the city.

"We have been taking care of the boy," said basti surakshya manch leader Anjan Nath.

Orissa Women and Child Development Minister Pramila Mallick said that though she had been repeatedly saying that Biranchi Das was "using" Budhia for his benefit, no action could be taken against him "as he had the support of the boy's mother".

Superintendent of Police of Khurda, Amitabh Thakur said the police were aware of the development.

Five-year-old Budhia had amazed the sporting world by running 65-km non-stop from Puri to Bhubaneswar on May 2 last year in about seven hours to make an entry into the Limca book of records.