KEONJHAR: Vigilance officials on Wednesday caught a senior OAS officer in Keonjhar red-handed while he was taking a bribe of Rs 50,000 from the complainant to disburse compensation for his land acquired for a National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) project.
The accused is Sarat Kumar Giri, posted as deputy collector, land acquisition in the Keonjhar collectorate. The officer had reportedly demanded a bribe of Rs 70,000 from one Chitrasen Brahma.
Vigilance said Brahma was supposed to receive Rs 7 lakh compensation after NHAI acquired his land for the expansion of NH-20 into an eight-lane highway near Benayodi. Giri allegedly demanded 10 per cent of the compensation amount as a bribe from Brahma.
Following a complaint filed by Brahma, Vigilance officials laid the trap and nabbed Giri. The bribe money was recovered from the officer. A case was registered and Giri arrested. Simultaneous searches are underway at three locations linked to the officer from disproportionate assets angle, said Vigilance.