Tata Motors Job Fraud: Odisha Crime Branch Arrests Associate Of Gopalpur MLA Pradeep Panigrahi

Bhubaneswar:  The Odisha Crime Branch on Thursday arrested Sarbeswar Rao, the former principal of the City College, Berhampur and a close associate of the Gopalpur MLA Pradeep Panigrahi, in connection with the massive job fraud in Tata Motors.

Rao was later sent to the Jharpada Jail after the SDJM court rejected his bail plea.

The investigating agency arrested Rao after a marathon interrogation. According to the Crime Branch sources, Rao, Akash Pathak, the son of suspended Odisha IFS officer Abhay Kant Pathak, and Pradeep, who was suspended by ruling BJD, ran the job racket.

During his tenure as the principal of the City College, Rao used to send lists of students to David Peter, the personal assistant of Akash Pathak, for recruitment in the Tata Motors, Pune. After collecting the money from the students, Rao was depositing it in the bank account of Pradeep, the sources added.

The Crime Branch found the complicity of Rao during the interrogation of Peter who had reportedly said that Rao was the mediator between Akash and Pradeep and was collecting money from the job aspirants.

The Crime Branch had a face-to-face interrogation of Rao and Pradeep on Wednesday.

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