Social Welfare Department Assistant caught red-handed while accepting Rs. 1 lakh

Mysore/Mysuru: A Second Division Assistant (SDA) in the Office of Joint Director, Social Welfare Department, was trapped by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) when he was accepting a bribe of Rs. 1 lakh from a Hostel Warden. The SDA had promised the Warden that the mismanagement at the Government Hostel will not be reported to the higher officers if the bribe was paid.

The SDA is Shivanna, who was trapped in the Office at Vinayakanagar in Mysuru on Monday evening. He has been arrested and the ACB sleuths are gleaning more information from him. Joint Director Muniraju had visited pre-matric hostel at Ravandoor in Periyapatna and had taken the Warden H. Rajaiah into task for the pathetic living conditions of the hostel students.

Muniraju was upset at gross mismanagement of Government funds at the hostel and had issued a show-cause notice to the Warden and had also threatened to lodge a complaint with the Social Welfare Department. He had warned Rajaiah that he would take disciplinary action against him.

Meanwhile, learning about the incident, Shivanna called up Rajaiah and told him that if he paid Rs. 3 lakh bribe to Muniraju no action will be taken against him (Rajaiah). Fearing disciplinary action and thinking about his job security, Rajaiah agreed to pay Rs. 1.50 lakh and paid Rs. 50,000 as first instalment.

After paying the money, Rajaiah lodged a complaint with the ACB against Shivanna and Muniraju. Acting on the complaint, ACB sleuths laid a trap and Shivanna was caught red-handed while accepting Rs. 1 lakh, the second part of the promised bribe.

ACB Dy.SP H. Parashuramappa, Inspector Niranjan, staff Kumar Aradhya, Guru, Nethravathi, Chethan and Yogesh participated in the trapping operation.