Bribery Verdict: DRT Officials Sentenced in Longstanding Case

A CBI court convicted a former DRT recovery inspector Anil Kumar Sharma and advocate Amit Kotak for a 2009 bribery case, sentencing them to two years' imprisonment and a Rs 1.5 lakh fine. They demanded Rs 3.5 lakh for property auction issues. CBI arrested them in 2009 after a complaint.

A CBI court has handed down a two-year rigorous imprisonment sentence to Anil Kumar Sharma, a former recovery inspector, and Amit Kotak, an advocate, over a 16-year-old bribery case involving the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT).

The court ordered Sharma and Kotak to pay a collective fine of Rs 1.5 lakh. The chargesheet reveals they sought an illegal Rs 3.5 lakh bribe from a complainant over property auction matters. On initial demand, the complainant paid Rs 1 lakh, with the balance due later.

The CBI, acting on a complaint, caught Kotak accepting the bribe, leading to arrests and subsequent searches in January 2009. A chargesheet was filed later that year, marking the culmination of extensive investigation efforts.

(With inputs from agencies.)