Guwahati, April 29: A team from the Assam directorate of vigilance and anti-corruption laid a trap in the office of the director of health services, Nagaon, and caught a food safety officer while taking bribe inside his office chamber from the complainant on Friday.
Birinchi Kumar Karjee, a designated food safety officer at the office of the joint director health services, Nagaon, had demanded a bribe of Rs one lakh for issuing a FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) license to the complainant.
“The tainted money amounting to Rs 10,000 was recovered from the possession of Karjee in the presence of independent witnesses as per laid down procedure. The accused public servant has been apprehended by the team of vigilance and anti-corruption,” an official statement issued here said.
Karjee is the designated food safety officer for Nagaon, Hojai, Morigaon, Karbi Anglong, West Karbi Anglong and Dima Hasao districts.
“The complainant had visited Karjee’s office several times to obtain the license but on one pretext or the other, he kept on pestering the complainant and finally agreed to issue the license only if the complainant paid a bribe of Rs one lakh in advance to him. Unwilling to pay such a bribe, the complainant approached the directorate for taking legal action against the public servant,” the statement said.
A case vide ACB police station (case number 10/2022) under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 (as amended in 2018) has been registered against Karjee in this regard.
Simultaneous searches were conducted soon after his arrest at Kamakhya Lodge, Nagaon and also in his house located at Juripar, Guwahati.
It may be mentioned that Karjee had taken a room on rent at Kamakhya Lodge.
“During the searches, a sum of Rs 9,66,500 has been recovered along with incriminating documents. Investigation of the case is under progress,” it said.