Odisha CB takes Gouda on six-day remand

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Jul 4:

The Odisha Crime Branch (CB) today took prime accused in the Rs 88 lakh health check-up scam-Dr Motilal Gouda, the suspended assistant director of the Directorate of Factories and Boilers of the Labour department on a six-day remand for questioning.

While the Crime Branch had moved the Khordha District and Sessions Court to take Gouda on a seven- day remand, the court allowed the Crime Branch to take him on a six-day remand.

Gouda was arrested by the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of the Crime Branch on Sunday from Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. He was kept at the Crime Branch headquarters in Cuttack and was produced before the court today.

Notably, Gouda reportedly issued a fake gazette notification on October 16 last year to over 100 industries including PSUs across the state enlisting five empanelled pathological laboratories and hospitals and had allegedly made about Rs one crore as the kickback.

Further, the accused doctor sent e-mails to industries from his personal ID.

He had inked an agreement with Nalco for Rs 63 lakh and was planning to sign another for Rs 1.6 crore with the Nava Ratna public sector unit.

Gouda allegedly along with his accomplices had conspired to falsify the gazette notification causing financial loss to the government. He was allegedly responsible for wrongful gains to specific private firms.

After the matter came to light, the state government suspended him and ordered a Crime Branch (CB) inquiry into the alleged irregularities.

The EOW of the Crime Branch registered a case against the assistant director on June 6 on charges of forgery, cheating, criminal conspiracy, causing the disappearance of evidence.

As per the complaint filed by the director of Directorate of Factories and Boilers with the EOW, Gouda had entered his room to manipulate the computer to destroy evidence and had taken away some documents.

The EOW has arrested three persons including a middleman and two pathology unit owners apart from Gouda in this connection.