Bhubaneswar, April 1 – The Odisha Vigilance on Wednesday arrested a senior official of the Odisha Police Housing and Welfare Corporation (OPHWC), who was found possessing a large amount of assets, including cash worth Rs 48.79 lakh and gold weighing more than 1 kg, during a search of his residence as part of an investigation into a bribery case.
The accused, identified as Bidyut Ranjan Bhol, is currently employed as a Deputy Manager at the OPHWC's Sambalpur Division.
Speaking to the media, P.K. Dwibedi, Superintendent of Police (Vigilance) of the Sambalpur Division, said that Bidyut Ranjan had been under scrutiny as the Vigilance department had received regular complaints that he was collecting money from contractors to clear outstanding bills.
Vigilance officials also received intelligence that Bidyut Ranjan was planning to take the bribe money home in March.
Subsequently, the Vigilance department initiated an investigation and confirmed that the allegations against Bidyut Ranjan were prima facie true.
Following this, the Vigilance department approached the court seeking permission to take action against him.
"Meanwhile, on Tuesday, we suddenly received information that Bidyut Ranjan, along with the bribe money collected from contractors, was leaving for his official quarters at Rasulgrah in Bhubaneswar, where his family resides. Acting on this information, we deployed a special vigilance team, which intercepted Bidyut Ranjan's vehicle on Tuesday near the Sambalpur Railway station," the Vigilance SP said.
During the search, police officers found cash worth more than Rs 5,18,900 in Bidyut Ranjan's possession.
Later, the police searched his office and rented accommodation, seizing several incriminating materials.
Following the interception, simultaneous searches were launched at multiple locations linked to Bidyut Ranjan, including his native and relative's houses in Sambalpur, Bhubaneswar, and Bhanjanagar (Ganjam).
He and his family were also found to be in possession of two multi-story buildings, one flat in Bhubaneswar, 29 plots in Jatni, Berhampur, and other locations, 1.14 kg of gold, including six gold coins and two gold biscuits.
During the house searches, Vigilance officials recovered cash worth Rs 48,79,100 (including Rs 35 lakh stashed in a trunk at his elder sister's house) and deposits worth Rs 30 lakh.
The Vigilance officials arrested Bidyut Ranjan on Wednesday, registering a case at the Sambalpur Vigilance Police Station under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 2018.