Textile commissioner's PA caught demanding bribe in Nagpur

The complainant had received a cheque of Rs 34.55 lakh for the service period of October 2015 to March 2019, while a bill of Rs 9.46 lakh for the period of December 2019 to August 2020 was pending with the department, it was stated. When the complainant approached the office of commissioner of textile at Civil Lines to sanction the pending bill, Verma allegedly demanded Rs 7 lakh bribe and after negotiations, struck a deal at Rs 5 lakh.

The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Wednesday nabbed a personal assistant (PA) of the textile commissioner for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 5 lakh in Maharashtra's Nagpur city, an official said. Based on a complaint, the ACB laid a trap and caught Nitin Suresh Verma, PA to the commissioner of textile, while demanding the bribe amount, an ACB release stated.

According to the ACB, the complaint was lodged by the owner of a private security firm who had deployed eight security guards at Vinkar Co-operative Spinning Mill, which comes under the department of co-operative marketing and textile. The complainant had received a cheque of Rs 34.55 lakh for the service period of October 2015 to March 2019, while a bill of Rs 9.46 lakh for the period of December 2019 to August 2020 was pending with the department, it was stated.

When the complainant approached the office of commissioner of textile at Civil Lines to sanction the pending bill, Verma allegedly demanded Rs 7 lakh bribe and after negotiations, struck a deal at Rs 5 lakh. An offence under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against the accused at Sadar police station.