BHUBANESWAR: In one of the biggest raids in its recent history, the State Vigilance on Wednesday unearthed assets worth a whopping Rs 6.87 crore from the possession of a lady officer belonging to the Odisha Finance Service (OFS).
Nalini Kumar Prusty, the officer who came under the raids, is currently posted as Financial Adviser-cum-Chief Accounts Officer with Odisha Primary Education Programm Authority (OPEPA).
The anti-corruption wing of the State Government found that Nalini was in possession of huge movable and immovable property which were disproportionate to known sources of her income.
Her spouse Bijay Ketan Sahu is a Tehsildar at Chhatrapur.
Nalini and her husband have at least two flats in Utkal Villa in the City which were valued at a whopping Rs 1.8 crore. What surprised the Vigilance sleuths was the interior decor of the flat. When they valued the furniture and interior articles, it stood at a staggering Rs 1.34 crore.
Another property at Grand Asiana in Puri Town was estimated at Rs 21.4 lakh while the couple has a triple-storied building in the City whose value stands at Rs 49.6 lakh. They also have six plots in Bhubaneswar and Jatni. These property is estimated at close to Rs 58 lakh.
During the search at the couple’s offices and residences, the Vigilance came across Rs 1.24 crore fixed deposits in four banks while their deposits in saving bank accounts was Rs 22 lakh.
The household articles were valued at Rs 46 lakh while gold, diamond jewellery was estimated at Rs 40 lakh.
“This is probably the biggest disproportionate asset we have unearthed in the recent history,” Director, Vigilance Debashis Panigrahy said.
Sources in the anti-corruption wing said Nalini started her career in 1999 and given the salary and other perks as a Government servant, the assets are too huge to be accounted for although the couple claimed that they had taken loans.
In the past, raids on doctor couples have yielded wealth in the range of Rs 2 crore to Rs 3 crore, but an OFS officer amassing such assets left the sleuths wondering. “Our valuation is still underway. We will be able to give a clear picture on Thursday,” an officer said.
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