Chit fund scam; CBI Jt Director meets Odisha top cops, ‘big fish’ may be netted

Reported by Santosh Jagdev

Bhubaneswar, Dec 22;

Speculation about a big breakthrough in the ongoing CBI investigation into the Odisha chit fund scam reached fever pitch with joint director Ms. Sumanbala Sahoo, accompanied by SP MK Sinha, meeting DGP Sanjeev Marik and additonal DGP, Crime Branch Bijay Kumar Sharma on Monday.

Ms Sahoo, who reached the CBI office here at about 10.30 am, immediately went into a huddle with Sinha and investigating officers of the cases being probed by the central agency before rushing off to Cuttack with the SP. They are now back here after the meeting.

While there is no official word yet on what exactly transpired at the meeting between the CBI joint director and the Odisha top cops, sources said the discussions centred around the suspected involvement of some police officers iin the chit fund scam.

While former crime branch DSP Pramod Panda has already been arrested for ‘criminal conspiracy and deriving undue benefits’, the names of several other police officers, including some top guns, have been doing the rounds for their alleged involvement in the scam or in protecting the accused.

Diaries seized from the residence of fixer Subhankar Nayak by the CBI point to close links between some police officers and laeding lights of the chit fund scam. Two seniro IPS officers, north-central DIG Rajesh Kumar and Kendarapara SP Satish Gajbhiye have already been questioned by the CBI, it may be noted.

The fact that the joint director in charge of the East Zone, who is on her second visit to the state in the last three days, herself chose to meet the Odisha top cops suggests that the CBI could net some ‘big fish’ today.

Lending strength to such speculation is the fact that CBI SIT DIG S Bagchi also arrived at the CBI SIT office here at around 11.05 am, about half an hour after the joint director reached the CBI office. He is, however, still in the CBI office and did not accompany the joint director.

Both of them have reportedly come to take stock of the investigation so far and chart out the next course of action.

Bagchi went to the SIT office and had talks with officials before heading for the CBI office for a meeting with the joint director. He would discuss the status of the case against Microfinance Ltd and cases being handled by the SIT, CBI sources said,