Odisha Vigilance on Wednesday trapped two staff members of the Regional Transport Office (RTO), Raurkela, for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 26,000 to process Fresh Registration Certificates (FRC) for two auctioned trucks.
The accused — Niranjan Sandha, Dealing Clerk-cum-Night Watcher, and Dharmendra Kumar Behera, IT Executive — were apprehended shortly after they allegedly took the money from the complainant, the new owner of the vehicles.
According to the official release, the complainant had purchased the two trucks through an auction conducted by IndusInd Bank after the previous owner defaulted on loan repayments. As required under Transport Department rules of the Government of Odisha, the new owner applied for Fresh Registration Certificates at the RTO Rourkela office.
Despite repeated follow-ups, Dealing Clerk Niranjan Sandha delayed the processing of the applications and instead demanded Rs 13,000 per truck — a total of Rs 26,000 — to facilitate the issuance of the FRCs. Frustrated by the demand, the owner approached Odisha Vigilance.
Acting on the complaint, a Vigilance team laid a trap and caught both Sandha and his associate Behera while accepting the bribe. The entire tainted amount of Rs 26,000 was recovered and seized on the spot.
Following the successful trap, simultaneous searches were launched at three locations linked to Sandha from the angle of disproportionate assets.
A case has been registered at Rourkela Vigilance Police Station (Case No. 07 dated 05.08.2026) under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018. Investigation against both accused is currently underway, with a detailed report expected soon.
