Botched cashew nut public sale: Mohana BDO faces suspension axe

By Express News Service
BERHAMPUR: The State authorities on Friday suspended Mohana block improvement officer (BDO) Bansidhar Khosla for his involvement in promoting seized cashew nut at throwaway costs by public public sale.After a legal case was registered in opposition to him at Mohana police station in Gajapati district, Khosla was positioned beneath suspension. Earlier, a sub-inspector (SI) of Adaba police station was suspended within the case.

The BDO and 6 others landed in bother after a case was filed in opposition to them for allegedly promoting large portions of seized cashew nuts at low costs by defective public public sale. In August final yr, Adaba police had seized a truck loaded with 17 tonne cashew nuts and three.5 quintal ganja close to Mandimera village. Two individuals have been arrested on this connection. 

After the case got here up for listening to earlier than the Civil Judge, Mohana, the courtroom directed to promote the seized cashew nuts by public public sale. SI Alok Ranjan Jagdal, the investigating officer of the case, submitted a report within the courtroom stating that the uncooked cashew nut inventory was offered for Rs 14 lakh in presence of BDO Khosla, provide inspector Shankar Behera and in-charge IIC Tapan Kumar Pati. 

However in November, the courtroom doubted veracity of Jagdal’s declare and directed the police to re-investigate the case and submit a report. Following the courtroom’s order, the Gajapati SP entrusted ASP Sitaram Satpathy to probe the case. During investigation, it was discovered {that a} whole of 17 tonne cashew nut price Rs 64 lakh was seized from the truck.

The officers involved ignored the norms whereas conducting the general public public sale and offered the seized objects at costs lower than the market worth in connivance with some merchants and carried out the public sale in an unlawful method, Satpathy’s report acknowledged. Basing on the report, Jagdal was suspended for gross misconduct whereas a case was filed in opposition to BDO Khosla, IIC Pati, provide inspector Behera, cashew dealer Okay Rabi Kumar and the motive force of the truck B Mohan Rao.