Srinagar, Apr 22: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Monday trapped and arrested a Gram Sevak in North Kashmir’s Bandipora district for demanding and accepting bribe.
A top official from the North Kashmir Wing of ACB told Rising Kashmir that Abdul Rashid Khan, a Gram Sewak of Block Arin in District Bandipora has been arrested for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 2,500 from a complainant.
He said a complaint was filed against Abdul Rashid, accusing him of demanding a Rs 6,000 bribe for performing geo-tagging for availing the PMAY-G scheme.
According to the complainant, his case under the PMAY-G Scheme was sanctioned in 2023 for the construction of a paca house.
“He received an initial installment of Rs 50,000 through his bank account from the Rural Development Department (RDD) and completed the plinth of the house with that money. However, for further installments, he was informed by officials at the BDO office Arin about the requirement of geo-tagging for further processing of the case,” the official said
The official further said that on April 21, 2024, Abdul Rashid visited the site and allegedly demanded a Rs 10,000 bribe from the complainant, which was eventually settled for Rs 6000. The complainant was asked to pay Rs 2,500 on April 22, with the remainder to be paid after receiving the second installment.
The complainant approached the ACB, and based on the complaint, a case was registered under section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988, he said, adding that a trap team was formed, which successfully caught Abdul Rashid red-handed while demanding and accepting the bribe of Rs 2,500.
Khan was immediately taken into custody and the bribe money was recovered from his possession in the presence of independent witnesses.
Further investigation into the case is ongoing, he added.
