Court sentences senior IAS officer to three years in jail

Senior IAS officer Vinod Kumar was sentenced to three years rigorous imprisonment today for committing financial irregularities in the Odisha Rural Housing Development Corporation (ORHDC) 18 years ago.

Special vigilance court judge Shyam Sunder Das also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on Kumar and his associate P C Das for the offence.

The judge rejected the bail plea of the IAS officer as an non-bailable warrant (NBW) was issued against his name. Kumar and P C Das surrendered before the court today as per the direction of the Orissa High Court.

"Though punishment of three years imprisonment is bailable, the court rejected Kumar's bail plea because a NBW was issued against his name," said government pleader Hemant Kumar Swain.

Kumar and five others were convicted by the special vigilance court on July 3 for committing financial irregularities of Rs 55 lakh in the ORHDC.

Sanjay Mohanty ex-assistant manager of ORHDC was only present in the court on July 3 while the five other accused including Kumar were absent on that day. The judge had issued non-bailable warrants against the five.

The court had sentenced Mohanty to undergo rigorous imprisonment for three years and to pay a fine of Rs 25,000.

The high court in its order on August 7 had ordered Kumar and the five others to surrender before the trial court for hearing of sentences.

On August 8, the special vigilance court had sentenced Asish Kumar Nayak, secretary of Gramya Bikash Manch, Pradeep Kumar Rout, ex-accounts officer, ORHDC and Chittaranjan Mallick, ex-accountant (contractual) ORHDC to three years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 25,000 each.

The Vigilance Directorate had registered a case against Kumar and the five others, accusing them of committing financial irregularities to the tune of Rs 55 lakh in the year 2000.