Dhenkanal, May 26: A forest ranger was taken into custody on Saturday for allegedly misbehaving with a woman job aspirant in his office.

The accused, a range officer of Sarangi range under the Dhenkanal forest division, had called the woman to his office for an interview on Saturday. The accused, Siba Prasad Samal, was produced before court today after police found prima facie evidence against him.

Dhenkanal divisional forest officer H. Maharathi, however, denied the charge of molestation.The victim raised an alarm and people gathered at the spot. Gandia police rushed in after they were informed about the incident and took the ranger into their custody.

“Both the accused and the victim were sent for medical examination. Further investigations are on,” said the police superintendent of Dhenkanal Manoranjan Mahanty.

“It is a fabricated case against the ranger as he recently led a crackdown against the stone mafia within his forest range and took action against the person who happened to be close to the complainant. To take revenge, they plotted the conspiracy,” said Maharathi.