The anti-corruption vigilance wing of Odisha police on Thursday arrested a mining officer posted in the mineral-rich Keonjhar district for allegedly amassing disproportionate assets amounting to 167% more than his known sources of income.
The arrested assistant mining officer, Padmanav Hota, was found to possess crores of rupees worth of ill-gotten movable and immovable assets, including flashy residential buildings and landed properties at prime locations, following a 48-hour-long search operation, the anti-graft officials said.
Arrested under the relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, Hota was remanded in jail custody after the special vigilance court rejected his bail application, they said.
The assets acquired by the mining officer through unfair means include a four-storeyed building with a 5,800 square feet area in Bhubaneswar, a double-storeyed building with a 10,000 square feet area in Keonjhar, a farmhouse spread over 5 acres in Keonjhar, 15 plots in different places of the state, besides Rs 54 lakh in bank, insurance, postal deposits, and mutual funds investment.
After a thorough search, inventory, and further inquiry, the income, expenditure, and assets of the arrested officer were calculated, revealing that he possessed disproportionate assets amounting to 167% more than his known sources of income, the officials concluded.