Puri: Vigilance sleuths conducted simultaneous raids on residence and office of Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) Prashant Kumar Swain of Puri wildlife division Wednesday, on charge of possessing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
Also read: Forest department official on vigilance radar for disproportionate assets
Separate teams of the anti-corruption wing also conducted raids on his houses at three other places this morning. They searched his office and rented house in Puri, residential house at Mahabhoi Sasan in Bhubaneswar, paternal house at Sisilo village under Balianta police limits in Khurda district and his father-in-law’s house at Dhenkanal Station Bazar area, Vigilance department sources informed.
Exact amount of disproportionate assets possessed by the accused officer will be ascertained after completion of the search operation. Hard cash of Rs 43,000, a bank passbook and several important documents were seized during raid on Swain’s Puri office, Vigilance Inspector Madan Mohan Pradhan expressed.
Raids being conducted by Vigilance team were underway till the last report came in. It is said that, disproportionate assets accumulated by Swain could exceed worth lakhs of rupees.
However, the ACF has refuted charges against him saying, “Nothing objectionable was found out during raids”.
PNN
