Phagwara, Oct 11 (PTI) The Punjab Vigilance Bureau, during its ongoing campaign against corruption in the state, on Friday arrested a station house officer (SHO) and his accomplice over bribery charges, according to an official statement.
The bureau arrested Inspector of Police Jatinder Kumar, posted as SHO at Phagwara City Police Station in Kapurthala district, along with his accomplice Jaskaran Singh alias Jassa, red-handed while he was accepting a bribe of Rs 50,000, the release said.
The arrests were made following a complaint lodged by a woman, a resident of Chachoki village near Phagwara, a spokesperson of the bureau said in the statement.
The woman had approached the vigilance bureau with a complaint alleging that the two police personnel had detained her son, his wife and his brother-in-law in March while they were dining at a local eatery in Phagwara, the spokesperson added.
A Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) case was then registered against her son at the said police station. The accused police personnel then allegedly demanded Rs 50,000 for not involving the other two family members who were detained.
Falling under pressure, the woman ended up paying the bribe. Even after this, Inspector Jatinder Kumar allegedly demanded another Rs 50,000 to exclude her son’s mobile phone, worth Rs 1.5 lakh, along with a gold ring and gold ear studs, from the case evidence.
The complainant again paid the bribe and had the items returned to her. She further alleged that the Inspector Kumar kept repeatedly contacting her, asking her to pay bills totalling Rs 35,000 to Rs 40,000 for plants and pots he had purchased from the market and she paid the amount yet again.
Additionally, the inspector demanded Rs 1 lakh in exchange for filing a favourable challan in court and supporting her son during the trial and evidence. A final settlement of Rs 50,000 was agreed upon, which the complainant recorded and submitted as an evidence to the vigilance bureau, the spokesperson said.
After a preliminary inquiry into the complaint, a team of the bureau laid a trap during which Inspector Kumar and his accomplice Jaskaran Singh, a resident of Burj Hamira village in Moga district, were caught accepting a bribe of Rs 50,000 from the complainant in the presence of two official witnesses.
A case has been registered against both the accused at Vigilance Bureau police station, Jalandhar Range, and further probe into the case is on, the release added. PTI COR SUN RPA
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