Paralakhemundi: The R Udayagiri police on Friday noticed a peon working at the office of Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) Department in Odisha’s Gajapati district for allegedly serving urine instead of drinking water to a junior engineer.
The accused peon, Subash Chandra Behera, was arrested on the basis of a complaint lodged by Sachin Kumar Gouda, who joined the RWSS office as a junior engineer on July 22. The incident took place the following day when Gouda requested for water after dinner while working late in the office.
The peon was issued a notice under Section 35(3) in Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and later allowed to leave. It mandates that if arrest is not necessary despite reasonable suspicion of a cognizable offence, the investigating agency must issue a written notice directing the person to appear.
According to sources, Nayak handed him a bottle of water with suspicious liquid. After consuming the liquid, Gouda raised concerns about its taste and smell. Two other staff members, Ghana and Surya, also tasted the liquid to verify the suspicion. Gouda later felt unwell and was admitted to MKCG Medical College for treatment.
“After drinking from the bottle, I felt uneasy. Two colleagues also tried it and confirmed something was wrong,” he told reporters.
The engineer then sent the sample to the laboratory. A preliminary lab test detected 2.0 PPM (parts per million) of ammonia in the sample, raising suspicion of urine contamination. “The report showed high levels of ammonia, clearly establishing that it was urine. I informed my superior, but he did not respond. So I filed an FIR with the police on Wednesday. I want a full investigation. I want to know why I was targeted and humiliated in this manner. The accused should be punished,” he added.
Sources further said that a second sample was sent to a lab in Paralakhemundi, Gajapati district headquarters, for confirmation.
Nayak, however, denied the allegation. “I had brought the water from an aqua guard machine and placed it in the junior engineer’s room along with his food. I don’t know what happened after that,” he told the media.