The Vigilance department in Odisha arrested Ashwini Kumar Panda, the Tehsildar of Bamra, Sambalpur, on Friday for allegedly accepting a bribe. Panda was caught red-handed while taking a bribe of 15,000 rupees. The bribe was related to a mutation case where Panda demanded 20,000 rupees from a farmer to convert agricultural land into residential land.
The arrest was made following a complaint. The Vigilance team set a trap and apprehended Panda and his driver, P. Pravin Kumar, while they were accepting the bribe. Both were taken into custody, and the bribe money was seized.
Ashwini Kumar Panda, aged 29, had been a high-achieving officer, who excelled in the Odisha Civil Service examination in 2019 without formal coaching. Before his current predicament, he was seen as a promising officer.
Panda’s background includes education from Janakalyan High School and Ravenshaw University. He completed his B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering in 2015. After working in Delhi for three years, he returned to Odisha in 2018 to prepare for government service. He initially attempted the Assistant Section Officer (ASO) exam but missed qualifying by a small margin.
During a raid, the Vigilance department recovered 4.73 lakh rupees in cash from his residence. Investigations are ongoing to ascertain the source of this money. The incident has sparked outrage and disappointment, particularly among those who viewed Panda as a role model.