By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR/NEW DELHI: There seems no takers for BJP National VP Baijayant ‘Jay’ Panda and his model turned entrepreneur wife Jagi Panda, who heads OTV Network. On Thursday, the powerful BJP leader Jay Panda and his media baron wife Jagi got yet another shock with Crime Branch of Odisha Police led by flamboyant IPS Officer, Soumendra Priyadarshi writing to Income Tax Department over benami transactions and ruling BJD’s Rajya Sabha MP Dr Amar Patnaik knocking the door of Special Court to issue reasonable and timely notice to his clients, the 5 SC people whose land has been usurped by Jay Panda’s Odisha Infratech Pvt Ltd., under various provisions of the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989. Manoranjan Sarangi, a director of the Odisha Infratech Pvt. Ltd., and Siba Prasad Srichandan, who undertook all the dealings of the land for the company, have been arrested by the agency.
The CID-CB which had been asked by the State Revenue Department to look into the land scam at Sarua in Khorda, said, Odisha Infratech Pvt. Ltd. was involved in benami transactions. BJP’s VP and former MP, Panda and his wife and OTV’s MD Jagi Panda are the major shareholders and promoters of the firm. “The State Police have no authority to investigate benami transactions, for which we have urged the Income Tax Department to probe the matter,” a senior police official said.
Police said more than 7 acres of land was purchased by the company in the name of one Rabi Sethi and later sold. However, he was never in possession of the land. Scheduled Caste (SC) people have been cheated in the incident while Rabi Sethi was used as conduit.
CB sources said between June, 2010 and June, 2013, the company had purchased lands at Sarua in Khordha district belonging to Scheduled Caste people at prices much lower than the benchmark valuation in the name of Rabi Sethi, who was working as a driver of one of the directors of the firm. Possession of the land was never with Sethi, rather it was taken over by the firm.
“Successfully argued before the Hon’ble Special Court to issue reasonable and timely notice to my clients, the five SC people whose land has been usurped by Jay Panda’s Odisha Infratech Pvt Ltd., under various provisions of the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989,” BJD MP Dr. Amar Patnaik tweeted@Amar4Odisha.
“Happy that court accepted my contention & agreed to issue notice to all victims of this fraud & deferred the bail hearing to Monday Shall continue my fight for the poor against #JayPandaTheLandMafioso @PandaJay@otvnews@PMOIndia@CMO_Odisha@MSJEGOI@dir_ed@drkiritpsolanki,” the BJD MP Dr Patnaik in another tweet reiterated his commitment to fight till the SC families get justice.
“While one of the Directors has been arrested, why are the promoters at large? Why isn’t EOW arresting them? Why only menials are questioned & not the Don himself? I’d demanded ED investigations into their involvement in the Bahamas expose,” the BJD MP Dr Patnaik had tweeted tagging both ED and IT.
“Land grab at Sarua by the wealthy Baijayant ‘Jay’ Panda family shows how the rich and powerful violate with impunity the stringent laws of the land protecting the interest of SC/ST.A poor SC driver, an employee of a company owned by family of Jay Panda, was forced to cheat other SC persons by acquiring their land and fraudulently transferring it to the company owned by B.Panda & his family,” Kendrapara BJD MP Anubhav Mohanty said.
“Appears like defrauding the people of Odisha is a hobby of the B.Panda & family under the garb of social service. Abominable and criminal behaviour from someone who has been a law maker for almost two decades.The poor, landless SCs have demanded return of their land and punishment to all those who have masterminded this lowly act. Law is there also for the high and mighty, Let no one be spared. #OdishaWantsToKnow PMO India,Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, CMO Odisha, Jagi Mangat Panda,”, MP Mohanty said.
