Bhubaneswar, Jun 9: Odisha Vigilance on Tuesday apprehended a senior assistant of the Odisha Pharmacy Council and a private individual while accepting a bribe of ₹9,000 for facilitating the grant of a Pharmacy Registration Certificate.

The accused, identified as Biswamohan Pattnaik alias Raja, Senior Assistant at the Odisha Pharmacy Council, and his associate Md. Izaz Khan alias Prusty, were caught red-handed near the Council office in Bhubaneswar.

According to officials, the complainant had been requesting Pattnaik for nearly a week to process his Pharmacy Registration Certificate. However, Pattnaik allegedly demanded ₹9,000 to verify documents and expedite the approval.

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On June 9, when the applicant approached Pattnaik, he repeated his demand and directed the applicant to hand over the money to Khan.

Acting on the complaint, Odisha Vigilance laid a trap and nabbed both accused while accepting the bribe. The entire tainted amount of ₹9,000 was seized from their possession.

Following the arrest, simultaneous searches are underway at two locations linked to Pattnaik to investigate disproportionate assets.

A case has been registered at Bhubaneswar Vigilance Police Station under Case No. 09 dated 08.06.2026, Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018. Investigation is in progress against both Pattnaik and Khan.