Bhubaneswar: In a significant development, a Special Vigilance Court in Bhubaneswar on Saturday convicted two retired Odisha government officers—Bijay Chandra Mohapatra, former Joint Secretary (OAS-I) in the Agriculture Department, and Benudhar Mohanty, former Private Secretary to the Director of Water Resources—for demanding and accepting a bribe in a passport verification case. Both have been sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment (RI) along with a fine.
The duo had earlier been chargesheeted by Odisha Vigilance under Sections 13(2) read with 13(1)(d) and 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for demanding illegal gratification from a complainant in exchange for issuing a verification certificate required for obtaining a passport under the Tatkal scheme.
Following their conviction, Odisha Vigilance has announced that it will move the competent authority to initiate proceedings for stoppage of pension benefits of both Mohapatra and Mohanty, as per applicable service rules.
