Panchayat officer caught accepting bribe

Vigilance sleuths of Odisha today arrested a panchayat executive officer of Mayurbhanj district while accepting Rs 5,000 as bribe from a beneficiary of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).

The accused officer posted at Kosta gram panchayat of Suliapada block allegedly demanded the money from a villager to facilitate sanction of a house under PMAY in favour of his grandmother, a vigilance release said.

The villager then reported the matter to SP Vigilance, Balasore Division and accordingly a trap was laid.

When the complainant handed over the money to the officer inside his chamber, vigilance officials who were waiting nearby caught him red handed, the release said.
 

The office room and rented residential house of the accused at Jaleswar are being searched.