Two held for impersonating as minister, PA

Police said Chandan Rout and Biswanath Satapathy of Jajpur district allegedly impersonated as Orissa Industries Minister and his Personal Assistant respectively and contacted Surya Prakash Mishra, chief of corporate affairs of a sponge iron plant in Jharkhand.

The duo had demanded Rs 20 lakh to re-open the company`s closed mines at Joda in Keonjhar district and with finalisation of a deal, Biswanath was paid Rs 15.5 lakh at the company office in Jharkhand on April 10 this year to expedite the process.

When work was not done and the company officials could not reach them over given phone numbers, the company representatives arrived in Bhubaneswar to check the numbers which did not belong to the minister and PA.

As the two again phoned company officials last week having demanded Rs 16 lakh to purchase a sick plant in Orissa at throwaway price, the officials called them to Jharkhand and laid a trap informing Jharkhand police.

As Satpathy went to Jharkhand on July 19, he was arrested by Jharkhand police. On his interrogation Chandan Rout, who had posed as Industry minister, was rounded up from his residence at Jajpur Road with the help of local police today.

"On receiving complaint, a police team had come to Bhubaneswar and confirmed the minister and his PA are not involved in the crime following verification of phone numbers given by the imposters. We were waiting for an opportunity and fresh calls from the duo proved their undoing," said Indu Bhusan, head of the Jharkhand police team.