Bhubaneswar, Jul 29 (PTI) The Odisha government has dismissed an assistant engineer for tendering false testimony during trial to help a corrupt official in a Vigilance case.

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The action was taken against Upendra Bhanja Naik, assistant engineer of the RWSS section at Bijepur in Bargarh district based on the recommendation of Odisha Vigilance. He was dismissed from the job by the Housing and Urban Development department.

An official statement issued by the vigilance department said that Naik while serving as the junior engineer of RWSS Section at Sohela in Bargarh district had been requisitioned as an official witness against accused Anand Saraf, the then senior clerk posted at the Office of Executive Engineer, West Electrical Division, Bargarh in a vigilance case.

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Though Naik was the key witness in the alleged transaction of bribe, he resiled from his earlier statements and deposed false evidence to help the accused leading to acquittal in the case, the vigilance said.

The vigilance department said that it has started taking action against official witnesses who are turning hostile during trial in corruption cases. As per the strategy, steps are being taken to initiate criminal action for perjury under the IPC against such officials.

The anti-corruption wing said that so far, as many as 45 perjury cases have been initiated by Odisha Vigilance against complainants and witnesses turning hostile during the trial in last two years.

All acquitted vigilance cases are being analysed threadbare and corrective actions are initiated. Rewards for successful prosecution and responsibilities for willful lacunae in investigation/prosecution are being fixed, a release from Odisha Vigilance stated.

In 2022, the overall conviction rate in vigilance cases was around 50 per cent and the conviction rate in DA (disproportionate of asset) cases was significantly higher 77 per cent, ranking Odisha Vigilance among top performing states with regard to conviction in DA cases.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)