Bhubaneswar court dismisses petition against Naveen Patnaik, his aide VK Pandian

The complaint was filed by advocate and social worker Sudhir Charan Mohanty, who alleged that Patnaik and Pandian had spent around ₹500 crore on helicopter travel and meetings

Published on: Sep 3, 2026, 08:44:00 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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A court in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday dismissed a petition against former Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik and his close aide VK Pandian over alleged misuse of government helicopters and loss of ₹500 crore to the state exchequer, ruling that the petitioner had failed to establish a prima facie offence, comply with mandatory legal procedures for seeking registration of a first information report (FIR), produce documentary or Right to Information (RTI) evidence supporting the allegations, or demonstrate the required locus standi to bring the complaint.

The sessions court held that the petitioner had not complied with Section 173(4) of the BNSS. (Representative file photo)

Khordha sessions judge Biranchi Narayan Mohanty upheld a March 25 order of a Bhubaneswar magistrate that had dismissed the original complaint, saying the petitioner had failed to establish a prima facie offence, comply with mandatory provisions of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, or demonstrate the required locus standi to bring the complaint.

“ ₹500 crore on helicopter travel and meetings”

The complaint was filed by advocate and social worker Sudhir Charan Mohanty, who alleged that Patnaik and Pandian had spent around ₹500 crore on helicopter travel and meetings. Mohanty said he had relied on information obtained through the Right to Information.

Mohanty initially approached the Capital Police Station in Bhubaneswar seeking registration of an FIR. After police did not register an FIR, he approached the court of sub-divisional judicial magistrate. The magistrate called for a police report before dismissing the complaint, holding that it did not disclose a cognisable offence. Mohanty subsequently challenged that order before a sessions court.

The sessions court held that Mohanty had not complied with Section 173(4) of the BNSS, which lays down the procedure to be followed after an alleged refusal by police to register an FIR. The court found that the report submitted to the deputy commissioner of police (DCP) was cryptic and had not been sent by post in the manner required under the law.

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The court found that the petitioner had failed to produce documentary evidence or the RTI material allegedly collected by his witnesses to substantiate the allegations or establish the involvement of the two respondents. The allegations, it said, were omnibus and unsupported by substantive material.

“No requisite locus standi“

It held that the offences alleged did not fall within the categories covered by Section 33 of the BNSS and therefore the petitioner did not have the requisite locus standi to maintain the complaint under that provision.

Dwivedi told the court that the petitioner had been unable to place facts or evidence sufficient to substantiate the allegations.

The judge, in dismissing the revision, said, “Thus, in view of the aforesaid discussion, this Court is of the considered opinion that the complaint/petitioner neither made out any case under any of the penal sections referred to in the complaint petition with supported materials nor adhered to the mandatory compliance of Section 173(4) of BNSS, 2023 before presenting the complaint nor he had got any locus-standi to present the complaint in terms of Section 33 of BNSS, 2023.”

“Resultantly, this Court does not find any illegality in the impugned order dated 25.03.2026 passed by the learned SDJM, Bhubaneswar in dismissing the petitioner’s complaint,” the court held.

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The allegations relate in part to Pandian’s extensive helicopter travel during 2023, when he was serving as Patnaik’s secretary for the state’s 5T (Teamwork, Transparency, Technology, Time, and Transformation) initiative. Pandian travelled by helicopter to 190 locations across all 30 districts as part of a programme aimed at taking the chief minister’s grievance cell to the people.

Pandian had said the exercise generated 57,442 petitions, of which 43,536 were resolved. The state government was reported to have spent about ₹6 crore to ₹9 crore on helicopters alone, while opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleged that the overall expenditure on the meetings and related arrangements amounted to at least ₹500 crore.

The Patnaik-led state government did not release figures for the expenditure incurred on the meetings held at the 190 locations.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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