Bhubaneswar: A Special Judge (Vigilance), Sundargarh on Thursday sentenced Ramanath Das, a former Multi-Purpose Health Supervisor of Rourkela Municipality, to two years of rigorous imprisonment after convicting him in a corruption and misappropriation case dating back over two decades.
The court also imposed a fine on Das, who had retired from service, after holding him guilty under Section 13(2) read with 13(1)(c) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, along with Sections 409 and 477-A of the Indian Penal Code.
According to the prosecution, Das had been charge-sheeted by Odisha Vigilance for misappropriation of government funds during the period 1999 to 2001 while serving in Rourkela Municipality. He was found to have falsified official records and shown false payments to NMR (Nominal Muster Roll) workers under his supervision, thereby causing wrongful loss to the government exchequer.
Following the conviction, Odisha Vigilance announced that it would move the competent authority for stoppage of Das’s pension, as per rules applicable to convicted government servants.
The judgment brings closure to a long-pending vigilance case and reiterates the agency’s stand on pursuing corruption cases even after the retirement of accused officials.
