BENGALURU: Lokayukta police on Wednesday arrested a deputy tahsildar for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 13,000 from an applicant in his office in Ramanagara taluk in Bengaluru South district. The accused, Somesh, deputy tahsildar of Kootagal hobli, was caught red-handed while accepting the money from Rakesh of Hombegowdanadoddi village for signing a family tree certificate (Vamsha Vriksha).
According to Lokayukta police, Rakesh had applied for the certificate a week ago. After verification by the village accountant, the application was forwarded to Somesh for his final signature.
The officer allegedly demanded Rs 15,000 to sign the certificate. Despite repeated requests, he refused to process the application unless the bribe was paid. Following negotiations, the amount was reduced to Rs 13,000.
Acting on Rakesh’s complaint, Lokayukta police laid a trap. When he visited the deputy tahsildar’s office around 11.50 am on Wednesday and handed over the money, a team led by Inspector Vijay Kumar caught Somesh red-handed and seized the cash.