CBI questions ex-advocate general of Odisha

Odisha Channel Bureau Bhubaneswar, Sep 13: A day after relinquishing office of the Advocate General of Odisha following acceptance of his resignation by the Naveen Patnaik Government, former Advocate General Ashok Mohanty appeared before the CBI in Bhubaneswar on Saturday in connection with his purchasing of a house from CMD of Artha Tatwa (AT) Pradip Sethy.Though Mohanty had tendered his resignation from the post of Advocate General in May this year, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had accepted the resignation only on Friday, apparently after he was summoned by the CBI to appear before it and give his clarifications about the purchase of the house in Cuttack.Coming out of the CBI office after his statement was recorded there, Mohanty said that he had not accepted the house from Sethy as a gift.Responding to queries from journalists, Mohanty stated that he had purchased the house from Sethy by paying Rs.1.1 crore through cheque.The former Advocate General also informed that he had handed over the papers pertaining to the purchase of the house to the CBI.AT Group head Sethy is at present in judicial custody following his arrest for his alleged involvement in the multi-crore chit fund scam.Mohanty claimed that he came to know about Sethy, who was intending to sell his land in CDA locality in Cuttack, and he had no knowledge about the background of AT Group.