Bhubaneswar: A court in Odisha on Wednesday dismissed a criminal revision petition alleging misuse of government helicopters by former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and ex- 5T V K Pandian.
The court of Khordha sessions judge Biranchi Narayan Mohanty held that the complainant failed to make out any offence, did not follow the mandatory procedure under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) 2023, and lacked locus standi to file the complaint.
The court found no illegality in the earlier order of the Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (SDJM), Bhubaneswar, dated March 25, 2026, which had already dismissed the original complaint (ICC No. 69160/2024). The revision petition, numbered Criminal Revision No. 171/2026, was rejected as “devoid of merit.”
The allegation made by complainant Sudhir Charan Mohanty claimed that Patnaik and Pandian had used helicopters at a cost of around Rs 500 crore from the government treasury.
Mohanty had first approached Capital Police Station. When police did not register an FIR, he moved the SDJM court. After calling for a report from police, the magistrate dismissed the complaint as not making out a cognisable case. He then filed the revision before the District Judge.
Counsel appearing for the former Chief Minister and Pandian — senior advocate and former Advocate General Ashok Kumar Parija and advocate Sitanshu Mohan Dwivedi — informed that the complainant produced neither supporting material nor complied with Section 173(4) of the BNSS before presenting the complaint. The court also noted the absence of standing under Section 33 of the BNSS.
Dwivedi said the petitioner could not place any facts or evidence before the court to substantiate the charge.
The judge, therefore, upheld the lower court’s dismissal.
“Thus, in view of the aforesaid discussion, this Court is of the considered opinion that the complaint/petitioner neither made out any case under any of the penal sections referred to in the complaint petition with supported materials nor adhered to the mandatory compliance of Section 173(4) of BNSS, 2023 before presenting the complaint nor he had got any locus-standi to present the complaint in terms of Section 33 of BNSS, 2023,” the court said.
“Resultantly, this Court does not find any illegality in the impugned order dated 25.03.2026 passed by the learned SDJM, Bhubaneswar in dismissing the petitioner’s complaint, vide 1 C.C. Case No.6960 of 2024,” the judge held, while dismissing the criminal revision.
The order brings a formal close to the private complaint at the district court level. The case had drawn attention because of the high-profile respondents and the large sum cited in the allegation.
