MP Education dept official caught red-handed while accepting bribe

The Lokayukta police Tuesday nabbed a Madhya Pradesh Education department official for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 50,000 from a retired teacher, police said. Mukesh Verma (50), an accountant at Government Higher Secondary School, Kodariya, about 30 kilometres from here, was caught red-handed while accepting a bribe from retired teacher Kamal Kishore Soni in his office, Indore Lokayukta Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) Praveen Singh Baghel said.

"Verma had demanded a bribe of Rs 1.50 lakh for sanctioning Rs 4.71 lakh to Soni, this amount being the encashment of 207 leaves of the latter. A trap was laid and Verma was caught while accepting an instalment of Rs 50,000," Baghel informed. Verma has been charged under the Prevention of Corruption Act and further probe into the case was underway, the DySP said.