Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Thursday recommended the Central Government to give compulsory retirement to tainted IFS officer Abhay Kant Pathak.
It is for the first time that an All India Services Officer has been recommended by the Odisha Government for compulsory retirement on grounds of corruption.
Notably, the State Vigilance Department had arrested Pathak and his son Akash on evidence of amassing ill-gotten wealth of more than Rs 20 crores. Both father and son are now in Jharpada jail.
The Vigilance department during investigation came to know that Pathak was making cash deposits of his ill-gotten wealth in his son Akash’s bank accounts and further helping his son in fraudulently posing as MD of Tata Motors.
State Crime Branch department also arrested the highly corrupted IFS officer’s son on charges of forgery, cheating and duping unemployed youth by taking huge cash from them by falsely promising them jobs in Tata Motors.
Meanwhile the authority of Tata Motors also lodged an FIR against Akash for illegally using their name.
The Vigilance department during investigation revealed that Pathak was himself using high-brand expensive cars like Mercedes, BMW from the ill-gotten wealth.
During the lockdown period, Pathak and his son were flying across India in chartered planes and staying in luxurious five-star and seven-star hotels. Both father and son were using private security guards/bouncers to show off their ill-gotten wealth.
Notably, earlier the State government had suspended Pathak for possessing disproportionate assets to the tune of Rs 9.35 crore, beyond his known sources of income which he could not account for satisfactorily.
PNN