Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Vigilance on Wednesday apprehended Sitarani Pattayat, Superintendent of Excise, Keonjhar, and Bijay Kumar Mohanta, ASI-cum-OIC of Champua Excise Station, for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of ₹40,000 from a licensed liquor vendor for allowing smooth operation of his business.
According to Vigilance officials, Pattayat had been demanding illegal payments from the vendor since taking charge as Excise Superintendent four months ago. Unable to bear the continued harassment, the vendor approached the Vigilance Directorate and lodged a complaint detailing the bribe demands.
Acting on the information, an Odisha Vigilance team laid a trap and caught ASI Mohanta while he was receiving ₹40,000 from the vendor on the telephonic instructions of Pattayat. Both officers were subsequently apprehended. The entire bribe amount was recovered and seized from their possession.
Following the trap, simultaneous searches were launched at three locations linked to Pattayat and two locations connected to Mohanta, focusing on disproportionate assets (DA) verification.
A case has been registered at Balasore Vigilance Police Station under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018 against the two accused officers. The investigation is underway.
