NE NEWS SERVICE
AHMEDABAD, OCT 15
The Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has arrested a deputy collector and a taluka development officer (TDO) for allegedly demanding and accepting bribes in separate operations, an official said on Friday.
The ACB on Thursday arrested deputy collector Nihar Bhetariya, serving in Devbhumi-Dwarka district, for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 3 lakh, while TDO Amrut Parmar of Sutrapada taluka in Gir-Somnath district was held for taking Rs 5,000 from a contractor, the official said.
Bhetariya is a Class-1 officer of the Gujarat Administrative Service (GAS), he said.
According to a release issued by the ACB, a farmer and two of his friends had submitted applications for firearm licences to purchase guns to protect their crops from animals.
Bhetariya had sought Rs 1 lakh from each applicant for granting the approval, the official said.
After getting a complaint from the farmer, the ACB laid a trap at Bhetariya’s office in Dwarka town and caught him red-handed while accepting Rs 3 lakh cash, he said.
In a similar operation on Thursday, TDO Amrut Parmar of Sutrapada taluka of Gir-Somnath district was caught while accepting a bribe of Rs 5,000 from a contractor, a release said.
Parmar, a Class-2 officer, had sought the bribe for issuing a completion certificate and release payment for civil work awarded to the complainant, it was stated.
Both officials have been arrested under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the release said.
