A vigilance team has arrested an executive engineer, irrigation department Umesh Kumar, native of Hardoi, Uttar Pradesh, on Saturday on charge of taking a bribe of Rs 15,000 from a complainant at his residence at Kothiyalsain in Chamoli district. Kumar had allegedly sought the bribe from the complainant, a native of Chamoli district, against clearing dues involving some Government projects.
In his written complaint lodged with the vigilance Dehradun sector, the complainant had stated that being a registered contractor in irrigation department, Chamoli, he had completed a Government project worth Rs 1.98 lakh in the irrigation block, Chamoli in February 2016. While Rs 65,000 had been approved for the some additional work on the same project under the district plan the department concerned kept sitting on the release of the funds. As per the complaint, placed thus, the contractor had approached Umesh Kumar, executive engineer, for the release of the funds. However, Kumar had asked a bribe of Rs 25,000, the allegation ran. Through persuasion, the amount had been finally reduced to Rs 15,000, the complainant said, adding that he had agreed to pay the bribe at the engineer’s residence at Kothiyalsain on July 22.
The complainant had meanwhile approached SP, Dehradun sector vigilance and registered a compliant over the same. Acting on the complaint, a team led by vigilance sector, Pauri, DSP was formed. Two independent witnesses were also included in it. The vigilance team members drafted a plan to trap them. Kumar was caught red- handed while taking Rs 15,000 as bribe from the complainant on Saturday in the presence of two independent witnesses.
A case under appropriate sections of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 was subsequently registered against the accused in Dehradun sector vigilance, said senior vigilance officer.
Besides, the vigilance team raided his Government allocated house at Kaladungi in Haldwani on Saturday and recovered cash of Rs 13,35,000 aside from gold biscuits, jewelleries weighing 477 grams, passbooks, cheque books of various banks, locker’s keys and some other documents from his house.