Bhubaneswar, 04 January (H.S.): Odisha Vigilance on Sunday apprehended a police inspector while allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹40,000 from a licensed liquor vendor in Bhubaneswar.

The accused, identified as Sri Bijaya Kumar Barik, Inspector-in-Charge (IIC) of CRRI Police Station, Cuttack, was caught red-handed near Rajmahal Chhak while demanding and receiving the illegal gratification to allow the vendor to run his business without interference.

According to Vigilance officials, the entire tainted bribe amount of ₹40,000 was recovered from the possession of the accused and subsequently seized.

Following the successful trap operation, simultaneous searches were launched at two locations linked to Barik from a disproportionate assets (DA) angle. During a house search at his government quarter located at Unit-I, Bhubaneswar, Vigilance officials recovered approximately ₹5 lakh in cash. Further searches are continuing.

In this connection, Cell Division Police Station Case No. 1/2026 has been registered against the accused under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018.

Vigilance sources said Barik is being interrogated regarding the demand and acceptance of the bribe as well as the source of the recovered cash. Further investigation is underway, and a detailed report is awaited.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda