ROURKELA: The CBI raids at the mines of the Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) in Sundargarh district on Friday has led to shocking revelations about a corruption racket run by an officer of the central probe agency as well as that of MCL.
The Delhi unit of the central agency is investigating the racket. An FIR was registered in this regard at the anti-corruption unit of CBI at Delhi on January 28 against Prashant Kumar Palei, an assistant sub inspector of CBI. Palei works at CBI’s anti-corruption bureau (ACB) at Bhubaneswar.
The other accused was Sarada Prasad Sethy, dispatch officer of the Garjanbahal Open Cast Project under Basundhara Area of MCL in Sundargarh. The FIR said Palei and Sethy allegedly entered into an unholy nexus between June and September 2025.
Palei is charged with extracting ‘protection money’ from Sethy who was allegedly illegally generating pecuniary benefits from coal transporters and lifters using his official position and influence of Palei.
The FIR quoting a reliable source stated that Sethy was generating illegal money from coal transporters and lifters by showing them favour with extra quantity of coal and passing off high grade coal as low grade on regular basis. Sethy’s present posting was also influenced by Palei who reportedly had threatened the Basundhara Area general manager (GM) PB Reddy in this regard, it said.
The CBI ASI has also been charged with taking bribe and other illegal benefits from Sethy on the pretext of protecting him from investigating agencies like CBI and also threatening opponents of Sethy. On Palei’s instruction, Sethy also arranged a private person to unofficially assist at the ACB office of CBI at Bhubaneswar.
His monthly pay of Rs 25,000 was generated by Sethy and Palei paid Rs 20,000 to that person and kept Rs 5,000 with him. It said on July 17, 2025, Palei had received Rs 1 lakh bribe through his son’s bank account from Sethy and again on September 24, received Rs 1 lakh in the same manner.
The FIR said Sethy had also arranged payment of Rs 7,000 towards vehicle hiring of a vehicle for personal use of Palei, adding the CBI officials also tried to influence the MCL GM and threatened another MCL officer to share confidential details of a tender.
They was booked under sections 61(2) and 318 (4) of BNS and sections 7 and 8 of PC Act and are being interrogated. Deputy SP of CBI from the AC-1 Unit of Delhi Amit Kumar Dwivedi has been entrusted with the probe.