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Ex-minister sentenced to jail on corruption charges

Bibhuti Mishra in Bhubaneswar

Good news for those who have come to believe that politicians can get away with anything in this country. A former Congress minister in Orissa has been awarded a prison sentence and fined for having properties disproportionate to his known sources of income.

The case dates back to 1990 when Biju Patnaik, the then chief minister, ordered vigilance raids on 12 members of the J B Patnaik ministry. Though charges against three ministers, including J B Patnaik, were withdrawn soon after, cases against the rest have been pending.

In one of these cases Justice Mukundaprasad Mishra, special judge of the vigilance court in Bhubaneswar, has found former minister Sarat Rout guilty and sentenced him to one year's rigorous imprisonment. The judge has also slapped a fine of Rs 20,000 on him.

Rout was the minister for tourism and culture and later for planning and coordination in the Patnaik ministry between 1985 and 1989.

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