Kota (RJ), May 6 (PTI) A senior official of the agriculture department in Rajasthan’s Baran district was arrested for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 8,000, an official said on Wednesday.
Anandilal Meena, a Joint Director of Agriculture Extension in Baran, was caught red-handed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) team while he was receiving Rs 5,000 from a complainant and Rs 3,000 from another, he said.
The accused had already taken Rs 2,000 from them earlier, the official said.
According to Kaluram Verma, Additional Superintendent of Police, ACB Baran, the accused had been demanding money from fertiliser and seed dealers for verifying their stock registers.
He said the ACB received a complaint on Monday, alleging that Meena was harassing traders
by demanding Rs 5,000 per retailer for stock verification.
On Tuesday, an ACB team verified that the accused allegedly accepted Rs 2,000 from the complainants and pressured them to pay the rest of the amount.
Subsequently, the ACB team, led by Deputy Superintendent of Police Premchand, laid a trap on Wednesday and caught Meena while he was accepting the money from the complainants, ASP Verma said.
He said there are nearly 650 fertiliser retailers and seed dealers in Baran, and the ACB has initiated an investigation to ascertain if more individuals were involved in or were affected by the alleged extortion.
A case has been registered against Meena under sections of the Anti-Corruption Act. His residence is being searched, Verma added. PTI COR RUK RUK
