Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 2 (PTI) Kerala’s VACB registered 201 corruption cases in 2025, including 57 trap cases in which 76 persons comprising government officials and agents were caught red-handed, vigilance
officials said on Friday.
In a statement, the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) said that, in line with the government’s vision of a corruption-free Kerala, it intensified anti-graft action across departments during the year, resulting in record trap arrests, investigations and convictions.
In 2025, the VACB registered its highest-ever number of trap cases in a year, arresting 76 persons in 57 cases. This is the highest figure in the bureau’s history, the statement said.
The revenue department officials faced 20 trap cases, the highest number by any department. This was followed by the local self-government department with 12 cases and the police department with 6. The education department and the Kerala State Electricity Board reported three cases each, while 13 cases were registered across various other departments, VACB said.
Region-wise, five trap cases were reported from the southern zone headquartered in Thiruvananthapuram, nine from the eastern zone at Kottayam, 28 from the central zone at Ernakulam and 15 from the northern zone at Kozhikode, the statement said.
Vigilance officials said agents and middlemen play a key role in facilitating corruption in government offices, prompting the bureau to focus more on booking such intermediaries during the year.
In total, the VACB registered 201 vigilance cases in 2025 and initiated 57 vigilance inquiries, 300 preliminary inquiries and 136 confidential probes. Acting on intelligence inputs, the bureau conducted 1,152 surprise inspections across the state to detect and prevent corruption and irregularities, the statement said.
During the year, action was taken on 9,193 complaints received from the public, officials added.
In 2025 alone, vigilance courts convicted 39 accused persons in 30 cases. In addition, 12 convicted persons who had gone into hiding after appellate courts upheld their sentences were traced, arrested and jailed by the VACB.
The bureau also carried out eight statewide special surprise inspection drives simultaneously during the year.
Another significant trend noted in 2025 was a sharp increase in the amount of bribe money involved in trap cases.
According to the VACB, while earlier cases often involved relatively small amounts, bribes running into lakhs of rupees were seized in several cases last year.
The total bribe money seized during the year amounted to Rs 14,92,750, including in cases involving bribes of Rs 2 lakh, Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 1 lakh.
The bureau also registered three trap cases involving bribes accepted through Google Pay, the statement said.
As part of systemic reforms, the VACB implemented an internal vigilance mechanism across all government departments, acting as the nodal agency.
Internal vigilance officers were appointed and tasked with submitting regular anti-corruption reports to the vigilance headquarters.
The VACB also revised the Vigilance Manual during the year to update procedures in line with present-day requirements, officials said.
In addition, 24-hour toll-free and WhatsApp complaint facilities were introduced to provide easier public access.
Vigilance Director Manoj Abraham said that in the New Year, the VACB remains committed to an uncompromising fight against corruption and sought continued public cooperation by reporting corrupt practices to the agency. PTI TBA TBA ADB
