He joined the job with a salary of Rs 6,0 per month and today he has a wealth of crores of rupees. Has Baikunth Nath Behra, Assistant Executive Engineer, Orissa Government’s Integrated Tribal Development Agency won the lottery? On Saturday, vigilance officers searched non-income assets and recovered Rs 2 crore in cash, five multi-storey buildings and 14 land documents from his locker. His house and several properties are being searched.
Discussions about Vaikuntha’s property were going on for a long time. Many of his colleagues have also complained to the watchdog. The warrant was issued by the special vigilance court in Bhubaneswar. A team comprising Additional Superintendent of Police, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Inspector and other personnel then raided the Baikunth base.
Simultaneous searches were conducted at nine places, including his official residence and office at Chandrasekharpur, Shailashree Vihar, Kanan Vihar and Dharamshala in Jajpur district, including Baligura and Baripada.
According to the investigators, 2 lakh 66 thousand cash was recovered from Baikunth’s house during the search. 2 Crores in his account at the same time. Investigators have also recovered details of five storied houses in the names of Vaikunth and his family members. This includes a four-storey house measuring around 10,500 sq ft in Niladri Vihar, Bhubaneswar. Not only that, a total of four houses are said to have been found in Bhubaneswar and Jajpur.
It does not end here. Investigators have also recovered 14 pieces of land in Baikunth. Seven plots are in elite areas of Bhubaneswar. The rest are in Jajpur and Baripara. Investigators also recovered gold jewellery, fixed deposits, post office savings schemes and various investments. The process of determining the price of all these is going on. Experts are also looking into the current market value of land and property.
According to official documents, Vaikunth joined the service in 1999 as a junior engineer. He then took charge of the Tribal Development Agency and Engineering Department and became the Assistant Executive Engineer earlier this year.
The investigation is currently underway based on the evidence of several luxury homes, expensive land, huge amounts of cash and various financial investments. However, the real value of the recovered property will be known only after the investigation and determination of the market value of the recovered property.
