Balasore: Days after arresting BJD leader Soumyashankar Chakra alias Raja Chakra in connection with a large-scale fund embezzlement case at Gandhamardan Loading Agency and Transport Cooperative Limited in Keonjhar district affiliated to Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC), the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch took him on three-day remand from the Odisha Protection of Interests of Depositors (OPID) court in Balasore Wednesday.
The EOW apprehended Chakra last Thursday and presented him before Balasore OPID court Friday. The court had sent him to judicial custody until March 19. The EOW requested a five-day remand for further interrogation. However, the court approved a three-day remand from March 20 to March 22. Chakra’s legal counsel will be allowed to be present during questioning.
On the other hand, Chakra’s bail petition is still pending in the High Court. Earlier, former cooperative society chairman Manas Ranjan Barik and secretary Utkal Das were arrested and are currently facing trial. Investigators alleged that Chakra, along with Barik and Das, misappropriated crores of rupees through fraudulent transactions. The cooperative reportedly generated a profit of Rs 185 crore between 2017-18 and March 2024.
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However, no audits were conducted since 2012-13. The cooperative society claimed to have spent Rs 34 crore on local development projects, while investigators found evidence suggesting otherwise. In one instance, instead of using the cooperative’s vehicles, Chakra allegedly used his personal vehicles for transporting minerals. Furthermore, Rs 9.1 crore was paid to Maa Kali Petrol Pump from the cooperative’s funds towards refueling of his own vehicles. Additionally, the agency allegedly distributed Rs 33 crore over four years to gain public support and silence the local residents.
