Bihar: Bhojpur BEO caught taking Rs 1 lakh bribe, arrested by vigilance

Patna, Aug 27 The Vigilance Investigation Bureau has arrested Shahpur Block Education Officer (BEO) Ghulam Sarwar in Bihar’s Bhojpur district on charges of bribery.

The arrest has triggered a stir among government employees in the region.

According to an official of the Vigilance Investigation Bureau, Sarwar had allegedly demanded a 20 per cent commission from the pending salary of Rs 8.54 lakh of teacher Santosh Pathak, posted at Banshipur Vidyalaya in Shahpur block.

After negotiations, the bribe was fixed at Rs 1 lakh.

Pathak, unwilling to pay the illegal demand, approached the Patna Vigilance Department and lodged a complaint.

Following verification, a special vigilance team laid a trap and arrested Sarwar red-handed while accepting Rs 1 lakh on Wednesday.

Officials said further investigation is underway to identify whether more employees are involved in the bribery network.

In another incident, a team of the vigilance department on Wednesday arrested Mohammad Musahid Khan, posted as MSME Mitra in the Industry Department at Madhubani, while accepting a bribe of Rs 15,000.

According to Vigilance DSP Arunoday Pandey, the complainant, Sushil Yadav of Basbaria village under the jurisdiction of Saharghat police station, had approached the Patna Vigilance Office on August 20, alleging that Khan had demanded a bribe to clear the third instalment of a Rs 2 lakh loan under the small-scale industry scheme.

Around Rs 50,000 of the loan was pending, and Khan allegedly made it clear that the work would not proceed without graft.

Following verification of the complaint, a trap was laid. On Wednesday, as Yadav went to hand over the bribe at the Industry Department office, the vigilance team caught Khan red-handed with the cash.

The operation was led by DSP Arunoday Pandey, with the team comprising Police Sub Inspector Shashikant, Inspector Neeraj Kumar Panjiyar, Sashi Bhushan, and Deputy Superintendent of Police Wasid Ahmed.

Khan has been taken into custody, and further investigation is underway.

--IANS

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