Two prison warders were suspended on charges of demanding and accepting bribe from a prisoner’s family.
Deputy Inspector General of Prisons Murugesan passed the suspension order on chief head warders — T. Sekar and S. Velusamy.
According to sources, an under-trial prisoner, Mahin Abubucker, was arrested for smuggling contraband a year ago. He informed his friend Karthik Leo that the prison staff — a warder and a jail superintendent — were demanding ₹40,000 if he didn’t want to be transferred to the prison in Poonamallee.
His friend lodged a complaint with the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, who laid a trap to nab the accused. The officials caught jail warder A. Pitchiah red-handed when he was receiving the money at his residence in the new prison warden quarters. During interrogation, Pitchiah claimed he did so at the instance of the jail superintendent. Pitchaiah was lodged in the Central prison while the jail superintendent and the two chief head warders were transferred to Madurai and Palayamkottai.
Meanwhile, Abubucker’s family released a video of Sekar and Velusamy accepting bribe to a television channel, following which they were suspended.
