Bhubaneswar, Nov 3 — Trouble is mounting for former Director General of Police (Prisons) Susanta Kumar Nath, as a suspended jailor of Balasore District Jail has lodged a formal complaint with the Odisha Home Department, alleging that he was placed under suspension for refusing to follow Nath’s instructions to falsely implicate an Undertrial Prisoner (UTP) in a narcotics case.
In a letter addressed to the Additional Chief Secretary of the Home Department on Monday, the complainant, Pradipta Kumar Mahalik, claimed that on October 8, the Director General of Prisons summoned him to Bhubaneswar.
According to the complaint, Mahalik travelled by train due to a statewide bandh and was allegedly met at the railway station by Bhubaneswar Jail Superintendent Sarbeswar Sahu.
Mahalik alleged that Sahu informed him of the DG's alleged instructions to plant brown sugar into the pocket of an undertrial prisoner, Rajib Lochan Das, lodged at Balasore jail, conduct a search, and register a criminal case against him. When Mahalik declined, he was asked to meet the top official the following morning.
During an encounter at the DG's office on October 9, Mahalik alleged that the DG personally pressured him to carry out the operation, claiming heavy pressure from the Home Department.
The jailor stated that the senior official offered money, awards, and a promotion in exchange for compliance. Mahalik claimed he refused the offer and was subsequently kept sitting at the office until evening under sustained coercion.
The letter further stated that the jailor learned the directives were issued at the behest of an individual identified as Pragya Prakash Nayak.
Following the meeting, Mahalik reported falling severely ill, undergoing medical consultations in Bhubaneswar, and remaining admitted to the Balasore District Headquarters Hospital from October 10 to October 12.
Despite intimating department authorities about his medical admission via email upon discharge, Mahalik was suspended from service on October 13.
Terming the disciplinary measure retaliatory, unethical, and unlawful, the official requested the Home Department to revoke his suspension and restore him to his post.
Nath was shifted to the Home Department as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) on Sunday following allegations of sexual harassment levelled against him by a former woman jailor of Choudwar Circle Jail.