Orissa HC quashes Lokayukta order on vigilance probe against former BJD minister

Pradeep Panigrahy had challenged the legal validity of the Lokayukta order and alleged that it had acted in excess of jurisdiction and authority and purely on extraneous considerations

Published on: Feb 4, 2021, 18:17:41 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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The Orissa High Court has quashed the Lokayukta’s order for a probe by the state vigilance department against expelled BJD MLA and former minister Pradeep Kumar Panigrahy on grounds that the complainant and investigating agency in a quasi-judicial process cannot be the same, his lawyer Pitambar Acharya said Thursday.

Pradeep Panigrahy was expelled from the BJD on Sunday. (HT PHOTO)

In response to Panigrahy's petition challenging the legal validity of the Lokayukta order and alleging that the anti-corruption body had clearly acted in excess of jurisdiction and authority and purely on extraneous considerations and facts, a division bench of chief justice S Muralidhar and justice Biswanath Rath on Wednesday quashed the Lokayukta order.

The Lokayukta had issued the order in December last year on a complaint filed by deputy superintendent of police (Vigilance), Ranjan Kumar Das observing that the complaint revealed how Panigrahy amassed assets disproportionate to his known source of income. While issuing the order, the Lokayukta had observed that the complaint prima facie revealed that Panigrahy by resorting to corrupt practice had amassed assets disproportionate to his known source of income. The Lokayukta had asked the vigilance department to submit a report within two months.

In his petition, Panigrahy had said that Lokayukta is supposed to proceed in a manner to ascertain whether there exists a prima facie case. "However, the Lokayukta jumped to the conclusion that the complaint of the vigilance department revealed a prima facie case. In the absence of granting of opportunity of hearing to the petitioner, the finding of Lokayukta is perverse, illegal and unsustainable under law," he alleged.

Panigrahy also alleged in his petition that he had already been prejudiced as a rumour was floated around that the chief minister had made a reference to the Lokayukta to initiate a proceeding against him.

Panigrahy is currently in jail after the Odisha CID arrested him on December 3 in connection with a corruption case.

It was alleged that Panigrahy had collected money from people on behalf of Akash Pathak, son of suspended IFS officer Abhay Pathak, with the false promise of providing jobs in Tata Motors.

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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