Peon arrested for ‘serving urine’ to engineer in Odisha’s Gajapati

In a shocking case that has sparked public outrage, the R. Udayagiri police on Friday arrested a peon accused of serving urine in place of water to a junior engineer posted at the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) office in Gajapati district.

The accused, identified as Siba Narayan Nayak, was taken into custody following an FIR filed by Sachin Gouda, a Junior Engineer (JE) who joined the RWS&S office on July 22. The alleged incident occurred the very next night, on July 23, when Gouda asked the peon for drinking water after dinner. Instead, he was reportedly handed a steel bottle containing a suspicious liquid.

According to Gouda, after consuming the liquid, he felt uneasy and suspected that it was not water. Two other staff members, Ghana and Surya, also tasted the liquid to verify the suspicion. A sample was sent for lab testing, which revealed the presence of 2.0 PPM ammonia, raising concerns of urine contamination. A second sample has been forwarded to a laboratory in Paralakhemundi for confirmation.

The engineer, who reportedly fell ill after the incident, is undergoing treatment at MKCG Medical College and Hospital, Berhampur. Following medical care, Gouda formally lodged a complaint with the R. Udayagiri police, leading to the arrest of the accused peon.

In his statement, the engineer said, “When I asked for water, Siba brought a bottle from the Aqua Guard and gave it to me. After drinking, I felt uneasy. Two other staff members also tasted it and suspected foul play.”

Siba, however, denied any wrongdoing. “I brought the water along with his food. I don’t know what happened in between. I have done nothing wrong. I’ve left everything to God,” he had told reporters.

The matter has also been brought to the attention of the Odisha Water Resources Directorate and has reportedly been escalated to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) for further inquiry.

Police have launched a detailed investigation into the matter, including verifying the lab reports and questioning other staff members present at the time.