The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) team from Ambala has arrested two municipal officials—Junior Engineer (JE) Tarun and Manager Vishal Gupta—after they were caught red-handed accepting a bribe of Rs 25,000 in Kaithal district. The accused had demanded a bribe of Rs 50,000 from a beneficiary in exchange for processing benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), a government housing scheme.
According to the complaint, the beneficiary had already received the first installment of Rs 1 lakh from the scheme but was told by the accused that Rs 25,000 was required to receive the remaining amount. After a prolonged application process spanning four years, during which the officials repeatedly rejected his form citing flaws unless a bribe was paid, the beneficiary decided to report the matter to the ACB.
The accused, who initially rejected the bribe at the Municipal Council office, later arranged a meeting at a local restaurant. As soon as they began accepting the bribe from the victim, the ACB team apprehended them on the spot. Both Tarun and Vishal Gupta were arrested by the team under corruption charges.
ACB Kaithal Inspector Sube Singh shared that the accused had been depriving the beneficiary of his rightful benefits under the housing scheme. Investigations are ongoing, with authorities looking into whether other officials were involved in the extortion and how many others may have been victims of similar bribery demands.
