Naveen Niwas should be kept under surveillance, activist tells CEO

Odisha Sun Times Bureau

Bhubaneswar, Apr 7:

Noted RTI  activist and member,Transparency International India  Dr Biswajit Mohanty has urged Odisha’s Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Dr Mona Sharma to set up surveillance  near the residence of the chief minister and check the veracity of strong rumours “that bundles of cash are being transported from and to Naveen Nivas, the official residence of the Chief Minister of Odisha”.

In a letter addressed to the CEO Dr Sharma, he has said, “I feel that police should check all vehicles entering and departing from Naveen Nivas in the presence of independent videographer to ensure that no illicit cash or liquor is being transported. Similar checks need to be carried out at the entry gates of the residences of all Ministers and Party Office bearers of the BJD party at Bhubaneswar and their district offices and residences.”

He has further said, “As most such illicit cash consignments are likely to originate from the capital city, it would be easy to check this flow if there are adequate steps taken at the source itself. There are also strong rumours that bundles of cash are also being transported from and to Naveen Nivas, Bhubaneswar the official residence of the Chief Minister of Odisha. These rumours need to be scotched by the Election Commission by adopting an appropriate strategy.”

Mohanty in his letter has referred to the ‘public talk’ about huge cash amounts being paid out for distribution among voters by the ruling party in Odisha and also the fact that  several complaints have been filed with the poll panel about the use of 108 Public Ambulances and police vehicles for transportation of cash as they are not normally stopped and checked by the police.

“I feel that police should check all vehicles entering and departing from Naveen Nivas in the presence of independent videographer to ensure that no illicit cash or liquor is being transported. Similar checks need to be carried out at the entry gates of the residences of all Ministers and Party Office bearers of the BJD party at Bhubaneswar and their district offices and residences,” he said in the letter.