Odisha chit fund scam: CBI issues notice to MLA Pravat Biswal’s wife, Balasore MP

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Dec 2:

After failing to appear before the CBI in connection with the Seashore chit fund scam, Choudwar-Cuttack MLA Prabhat Biswal’s wife Laxmi Bilasini and Balasore MP Rabindra Jena were issued notice by the central agency today.

While the CBI issued notice to Laxmi Bilasini asking her to submit some documents, the agency issued notice to Jena to depose personally before it.

Notably, CBI had summoned Laxmi Bilasini and Jena on November 26 to appear before it within two days. While Laxmi Bilasini sent her representative to appear before the CBI on November 28, Jena didn’t appear before the agency.

Worth mentioning, Laxmibilasini was grilled by the agency along with his husband in 2014 over their alleged links in the scam.

“My wife had a piece of land measuring 32 ‘gunthas’ at Benapur village in Jajppur district, which she sold to the Seashore group in 2011,” the MLA had said at that time after coming out of the CBI office here post interrogation.

His wife Laxmibilasini, however, had given a different spin to the land deal saying while the papers had been readied for the sale, the land was never sold.

Similarly, Rabindra Jena had appeared before the CBI in 2015 for questioning over his alleged links with the Seashore Group of companies.

As per sources close to the MP, Jena headed the ‘Supratik’ group of companies, which had lent an amount of Rs 18 crores to the Seashore group in 2010. Seashore had paid back the lion’s share of the money, but still owed Rs 1.86 crores to him, the sources added.