Court awards 16 months RI to Maha deputy engineer for accepting bribe

A Maharashtra government official was Thursday sentenced to 16 months rigorous imprisonment by a court in the neighbouring Raigad district for accepting a bribe. Raigad Additional District Judge B C Kamble convicted Ashik Bharti, a deputy engineer with the Kharbhoomi Sarvekshan and Anveshan Department of Pen, under the Prevention of Corruption Act and fined him Rs 5,000, said a senior Anti-Corruption Bureau official.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (ACB) Mahesh Patil said Bharti had demanded Rs 5 lakh from a contractor to get his bills cleared. The contractor approached the ACB following which a trap was laid on November 6, 2015 and Bharti was nabbed while accepting Rs 1 lakh, Patil said.

(With inputs from agencies.)