Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Lokayukta has given clean chit to senior IAS officer Bishnupada Sethi in connection with the allegation of high profile corruption in Odisha State Cooperative Milk Producers Federation (OMFED) in 2015.
The inquiry reports in the case confirmed that no financial loss was caused to OMFED, the anti-corruption body noted in its letter. The reports further stated that the decision taken by Sethi was in the best interest of consumers, farmers and OMFED.
"We are also of the view that the findings of the inquiry reports are well founded and unassailable," the Chairperson of Lokayukta said in the order.
But former bureaucrats have questioned the judgement by the Lokayukta as unilateral and wrong. Ex bureaucrat Sahadev Sahoo said that despite repeated pleas, neither the Lokayukta initiated probe into the allegations nor did it hand over the investigation to a separate agency, a decision which was very flawed.
RTI Activist Pradeep Pradhan, who is a complainant in the case, has also warned to move the High Court to challenge the ruling of the Lokayukta.
As per reports, Sethi, the erstwhile CMD of OMFED was accused of being involved in 'corrupt practices' in procurement of polythene pouches, costing the milk producers federation losses to the tune of crores.
The then Managing Director of OMFED, Madhusudan Padhi had urged the government for a high-level probe into the allegations of the scam. Even the CAG had also cited glaring irregularities in the procurement process following which the government directed for a departmental inquiry.