A vigilance team in Khagaria, Bihar, arrested a female ASI and a चौकीदार for accepting a bribe. The ASI had solicited the bribe from a complainant in exchange for speeding up the investigation of a case and filing the charge sheet. The complainant had initially reported the bribe demand to the vigilance department. Acting on the complaint, the vigilance team developed a plan and apprehended the individuals involved in the act of corruption.
The case originated from a complaint filed by the wife of Anil Kumar Shah, a resident of Rajazan village in the Nagar police station area of Khagaria district, concerning a bank loan. ASI Seema Kumari was assigned as the investigating officer. The officer demanded ₹10,000, later increased to ₹20,000, to expedite the investigation and file the charge sheet. The चौकीदार, Veeru Paswan, was also implicated in the bribery scheme. Mamta Devi, the complainant, informed her husband, Anil Shah, about the situation.
Anil Shah promptly reported the matter to the vigilance team. After receiving the complaint, the team, under the leadership of DSP Arunoday Pandey, launched an investigation, leading to the arrest of the ASI and the चौकीदार on Tuesday within the premises of the Nagar police station. The vigilance team, already present at the police station, took action the moment Mamta Devi handed over the agreed-upon bribe of ₹20,000.
The vigilance team subsequently transported the arrested individuals to Patna for further investigation and interrogation. DSP Arunoday Pandey explained that ASI Seema, the investigating officer, had demanded the bribe to expedite the investigation and filing of the charge sheet in a bank-related case. Anil Shah from Khagaria had lodged a complaint with the vigilance team, triggering the investigation that culminated in the arrest of the two individuals while accepting a ₹20,000 bribe.
The DSP of the vigilance team revealed that Anil Shah had initially reported a bribe demand of ₹10,000, but the investigation confirmed the amount to be ₹20,000. The operation has been hailed as a success in curbing corruption and has caused considerable shock within the police department.