JAGATSINGHPUR: Collector J Sonal on Thursday suspended a senior revenue assistant for his alleged involvement in misappropriation of government funds amounting to Rs 3.02 crore through manipulated bills.
The accused, Bhanja Kishore Behera, presently works as the senior revenue assistant in Naugaon Tehsil. He allegedly committed the fraud when he was posted in Tirtol block.
Official sources said while serving as the senior revenue assistant in the establishment section of Tirtol, Behera allegedly prepared and processed excess salary bills and false arrear claims, which were submitted to the local sub-treasury during 2011-12 to 2021-22. This was revealed by an audit conducted by the Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water department.
Preliminary assessment indicated that a total of Rs 3.02 crore was fraudulently withdrawn from the government sub-treasury, Tirtol. Of the total amount, Rs 1.74 crore was allegedly credited to Behera’s personal SBI account. Another Rs 86 lakh was credited to the personal SBI account of retired panchayat executive officer Pradipta Kumar Mallick. Similarly, Rs 42.59 lakh was credited to the SBI account of former assistant executive engineer Rajdeep Hansdah, who has since passed away.
After the financial irregularities came to light, Tirtol block development officer Girija Shankar Mallick filed a complaint against Behera and others at the local police station in March 2026. Based on the complaint, police registered a case and started investigation. However, no arrest has been made in the case so far though nearly five months have passed since the registration of the FIR.
Officials said Behera has been suspended under the provisions of the Orissa Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1962. During the suspension period, he has been directed by the collector not to leave the headquarters without obtaining prior permission from the competent authority.
