Vigilance scans Gajbhiye’s land grabbing

Odisha Channel Bureau Bhubaneswar, Aug 22: The vigilance wing of Odisha police has started an on-the-spot investigation of alleged government land grabbing by suspended IPS officer Satish Kumar Gajbhiye’s wife in Gop block of Puri district.The vigilance sleuths flanked by revenue personnel have inspected the spot of the acquired land where ponds were reportedly dug out for fishing activity.A team of revenue inspectors who were pressed into service for measurement of acquired land assisted the inquiring authorities.The probe team obtained land records from local revenue and tehsil officials for verification so as to ascertain the veracity in the alleged government land grabbing, said officials.While the ‘controversial’ IPS officer Gajbhiye claimed his wife had purchased a little over seven acres of land in Puri district for fish farming, revenue records show over 22 acres of adjacent government land had been encroached for the purpose, reports said quoting vigilance wing sources.The controversial IPS officer, who was removed as Kendrapara SP fortnight ago for allegations of police excesses, had earlier been suspended for violating the Service Conduct Rules.The former SP Gajbhiye had allegedly taken law unto hand and had unleashed terror on peaceful protesters in Kendrapara when people had staged agitation seeking arrest of controversial Godman Sarathi Baba.It was Gajbhiye under whose direction police had turned barbaric in beating the people black and blue on August 7.The opposition parties had then demanded that the guilty police officer needs to be arrested and suspended so that police would desist from resorting to such action in future.It was also alleged that Gajbhiye, entangled in chit fund scam, was instrumental in procuring vast stretches of land in the name of his wife and had not disclosed them in his property statements.