The Vigilance police on Saturday arrested Puri District Education Officer (DEO) Hrushikesh Kandi, on the charge of amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
Vigilance officials, who were keeping a watch on Kandi’s activity, intercepted the DEO near the Malatipatpur bypass crossing on the Puri-Konark road while he was going towards Bhubaneswar by a private Mahindra Bolero on Friday evening.
Subsequently, the officials recovered unaccounted cash worth Rs 1.11 lakh from his possession. When asked about the source of the money, Kandi was unable to give satisfactory answers.
Following the interception, another team of Vigilance sleuths conducted raids at Kandi’s house at Dum Duma in Bhubaneswar and seized cash worth Rs 92,000. He was also found in possession of assets worth Rs 81,39,640 including a double-storied building and three plots of land at Bhubaneswar.
Similar searches were conducted at his residential quarters, office in Puri and paternal house at Salepur in Cuttack district. Later, he was forwarded to the Bhubaneswar Special Vigilance Judge Court, which sent him to judicial custody till July 26.