ASI Booked by Odisha Vigilance for Allegedly Demanding Bribe in Land Dispute Cases

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Vigilance has registered a corruption case against Akshaya Kumar Sethy, an Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) posted at Nachuni Police Station in Khordha district, for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe to settle two land dispute cases.

According to Vigilance officials, two counter FIRs relating to a land dispute were registered at Nachuni Police Station on July 5, 2026. Sethy was entrusted with the investigation of both cases. Although the parties reportedly reached an amicable settlement on the same day, the ASI allegedly demanded ₹5,000 from each side, amounting to a total of ₹10,000, to dispose of the cases at the police station level.

The complainant, who was scheduled to return to his workplace outside Odisha, was allegedly instructed to submit an affidavit along with the bribe amount on July 10. Unwilling to pay the illegal demand, he approached Odisha Vigilance and lodged a complaint.

Based on the complaint, Vigilance officials conducted a trap operation on the night of July 10. During the operation, Sethy allegedly accepted ₹5,000 from the complainant at a secluded location. However, after noticing the Vigilance team closing in, he reportedly fled the spot on his motorcycle with the bribe money before he could be apprehended.

Following the incident, Vigilance teams launched simultaneous searches at multiple locations linked to the absconding ASI in the presence of officials from Nachuni Police Station.

A case has been registered at Bhubaneswar Vigilance Police Station under Case No. 16 dated July 10, 2026, under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018.

Officials said efforts are continuing to trace and arrest the accused officer, while further investigation into the case is underway.