Volte face by Odisha BJD MP; now says money seized by CBI belonged to supporters !

Reported by Santosh Jagdev
Bhubaneswar, Oct 26:

Repudiating his stand on Friday that the Rs 28 lakh seized by CBI from his Rairangpur residence during the raid in July this year was his ‘own money’, BJD MP from Odisha Ramachandra Hansda today said the money belonged to his supporters.

Emerging out of the CBI office here after questioning on his links with Nabadiganta Capital Services, Hansda said; “The money seized by the CBI from my residence was contribution from my supporters.”

The MP from the Mayurbhanj Lok Sabha constituency said he had been persuaded to join Nabadiganta Capital Services as a director by its promoter Anjan Kumar Baliarsingh and other directors of the company, but resigned once it became a public limited company in 2013.

He said he had neither invested any money in the company nor had received any remuneration as a director.

Hansda’s statement was echoed by former BJD MLA from Keonjhar Subarna Nayak, who was also interrogated by the CBI today.

However, former Nuapada MLA Hitesh Bagarti admitted that he had invested Rs 3-4 lakhs in the company, which he was yet to get back. “I have filed two cases against Nabadiganta, but have not got my money back yet,” he said.

Like Hansda and Nayak, Bagarti too denied having received any money from the company by way of remuneration. “All that I have received from the company is two cups of tea and three meals,” he said.

Asked why he had joined the company without verifying its antecedents, the ex-Nuapada MLA said it was a mistake he was paying dearly for. “Had it not been for my family, I would have shot myself,” he said.