Bhubaneswar: Odisha Vigilance on Monday apprehended Biswaranjan Pradhan, Office Assistant-cum-Data Entry Operator of the Welfare Section in Simulia Block, Balasore district, while he was allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of ₹5,000 from a complainant.
According to Vigilance, Pradhan had been demanding an overall bribe of ₹10,000 to process the complainant’s application for a government assistance of ₹2.5 lakh under the Sumangal scheme, meant to encourage inter-caste marriages. The complainant, who had married an Scheduled Caste girl on March 31, 2025, had reportedly been requesting Pradhan to move his file for the past six months.
When the complainant expressed his inability to pay the demanded sum, Pradhan allegedly reduced the demand to ₹5,000. Finding no other option, the victim approached the Vigilance authorities and lodged a complaint. Acting on the complaint, a Vigilance team laid a trap and caught Pradhan red-handed while taking ₹5,000.
The tainted money was recovered and seized from the accused’s possession. Simultaneous searches are being conducted at two locations linked to Pradhan on the disproportionate assets (DA) angle.
In this connection, Balasore Vigilance Police Station Case No. 12/2025 under Section 7 of the PC (Amendment) Act, 2018 has been registered. The investigation is underway.
