The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) sleuths on Friday arrested a Deputy Executive Engineer identified as Mohan Gandhi of Chitravathi Balancing Reservoir for allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹2 lakh for releasing a compensation cheque of ₹21 lakh to a displaced woman Leelavathi of Raghavampalli in Mudigubba mandal of Anantapur district.
Tirupati ACB Deputy Superintendent of Police V. Allabaksh said at a press conference here that Leelavathi was displaced as her land in the village and house got inundated. She was supposed to get ₹21 lakh for the house she was getting constructed at an alternative place and also 13 cents of land was to be identified and handed over to her.
Mr. Allabaksh said that Mr. Mohan Gandhi allegedly demanded 10% of the value to hand over the cheque after certifying the work on house construction and identifying some land as a backyard. She had struck a deal, but repeated demands for a higher sum forced her to approach the ACB, after which a trap was laid. The ACB sleuths reportedly arranged ₹2 lakh in currency notes of ₹2,000 at Rithi Gold shop at Srikantham Circle in Anantapur city.
As soon as the engineer allegedly accepted the money, the Tirupati ACB DSP, who is also the in-charge of Anantapur, along with other staff members arrested the engineer for further interrogation.
