Bhubaneswar: Vigilance sleuths nabbed Rakesh Kumar Panda, Forester of Ankui under Delang Forest Range in Puri district, while accepting a bribe of Rs 25,000.
The accused forester was allegedly demanding the bribe from a tractor owner to allow his tractor to pass through a forest road while carrying excavated earth for dumping on his field. Panda had earlier threatened the tractor owner that the vehicle would be seized if it used the forest road without prior permission.
Finding no other option, the tractor owner approached the Odisha Vigilance authorities. Acting on the complaint, a Vigilance team laid a trap and caught the forester red-handed while he was accepting the bribe amount today. The entire tainted bribe money of ₹25,000 was recovered from his possession and seized.
Following the trap, simultaneous searches are being conducted at two locations linked to the accused from the disproportionate assets (DA) angle.
A case has been registered at Bhubaneswar Vigilance Police Station under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018.Further investigation is underway.
