Bhubaneswar, 28 August (H.S.): Odisha Vigilance on Friday apprehended a Junior Revenue Assistant (JRA) of Patana Tahasil in Kendujhar district while allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹6,000 from an applicant in connection with a land mutation case and issuance of the Record of Rights (RoR).

The accused has been identified as B.H. Umashankar, Junior Revenue Assistant, Office of the Tahasildar, Patana.

According to Odisha Vigilance, the applicant had submitted an online application on June 3, 2026, seeking mutation of land in accordance with the rules of the Revenue and Disaster Management Department. When the applicant subsequently enquired about the status of the case, Umashankar allegedly demanded ₹6,000 for processing the mutation file and facilitating issuance of the RoR in the applicant’s name and that of other coparceners.

Aggrieved by the alleged demand, the applicant informed the Odisha Vigilance authorities.

Acting on the complaint, a Vigilance team laid a trap on Friday. Umashankar was allegedly caught while accepting the ₹6,000 bribe from the complainant at the garage of the Tahasil office.

The entire tainted bribe amount of ₹6,000 was recovered from the possession of the accused JRA and seized by the Vigilance team.

Following the trap, Odisha Vigilance has launched simultaneous searches at two locations linked to Umashankar as part of an investigation into his alleged possession of assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.

The searches are being conducted from the Disproportionate Assets (DA) angle.

In connection with the trap, Baleshwar Vigilance Police Station Case No. 17/2026 has been registered under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018.Odisha Vigilance said further investigation into the allegations against Umashankar is underway.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Monalisa Panda