ORHDC scam: Tainted IAS officer Vinod Kumar gets 3-year jail term

Bhubaneswar: A Special Vigilance Court today convicted senior IAS officer and former director of Odisha Rural Housing Development Corporation (ORHDC), Vinod Kumar and sentenced him to 3 years in jail in connection with Rs 1.02 crore ORHDC scam.

According to sources, Kumar along with six others have been charged of defrauding from ORHDC on the pretext of giving flats to as many as 27 people. However, the then accounts officer Chitta Mallick has been acquitted by the court.

Kumar was convicted of financial irregularities to the tune of Rs 55 lakh earlier in August this year.

Kumar who was the MD of ORHDC during 2001, Biswal Constructions director Bijay Biswal and five other officials of the corporation have been accused of furnishing fake certificates and abuse of power and will face the trial.

Recently, Kumar along with the then executive director (technical) of OHRDC Purna Chandra Das, assistant manager Sanjay Mohanty, accounts officer Pradip Rout, accountant Chitta Mallick and secretary of Gramya Bikash Manch, Asish Das were convicted by the court under section 13 (2), 13(1) (d) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and section 420 and 120 of IPC in connection with financial irregularities to the tune of Rs 55 lakh in the corporation in 2000. They were each awarded 3-year jail term.

Reports claim that as many as 22 financial irregularities and disproportionate asset cases are pending against the senior IAS officer.