CBI arrests DGM of Odisha firm, 3 others in bribery case

During searches at 15 locations, the CBI also seized ₹84.5 lakh in cash.

The CBI has arrested four people, including a Deputy General Manager (DGM) of Orissa Stevedores Limited, in a ₹25 lakh bribery case involving a Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Paradip Port Trust, officials said Friday.

Saroj Kumar Das, Chief Mechanical Engineer of Paradip Port Trust, had allegedly demanded ₹60 lakh as bribe from the company through his conduit Sumanta Rout to let it off without paying for the repair of a conveyor belt at the port that was damaged during unloading of its goods, they said.

The CBI team has arrested Rout, Das, a private person Sankha Subhra Mitra, and DGM of Orissa Stevedores Limited (OSL) Surya Narayan Sahu in connection with the case, the officials said.

The CBI has also named Debapriya Mohanty, of KCT Group, Charchit Mishra, Director of OSL, and the private company Orissa Stevedores Ltd in the FIR, they said.

During searches at 15 locations, the CBI also seized ₹84.5 lakh in cash, they said.

"It was alleged that the Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME), Paradip Port Trust (Odisha), was in the habit of demanding and taking bribes through his close conduit (Rout) for extending undue benefits to various private stakeholders engaged in port service and activities at the Paradip Port," the CBI said in a statement here.

Rout was in regular contact with Mitra who was Manager Port Operations of KCT group of companies and also allegedly acted as a middleman with other Cargo companies, officials said.