Lawyer gets relief in chit fund case

CUTTACK: The Orissa high court on Wednesday granted interim relief from arrest to Debashis Panda, former additional government advocate, till October 30 in the chit fund scam.
While granting relief, Justice S K Mishra asked Panda to cooperate with CBI in the probe. "The court has ordered that if CBI arrests Panda, he shall be released immediately on bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 10,000.The matter will be heard on October 29," said A K Budhia, the petitioner's counsel.
Panda, who served as additional government advocate from 2009 and 2014, had signed as a witness in sale deed of the house that former advocate general Ashok Mohanty had purchased from chit fund company chief Pradeep Sethy.
Sources said CBI in last few months has asked Panda several times to appear before it but he has been deliberately avoiding. tnn