Ahmedabad: The Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Saturday successfully trapped a police constable from Bapunagar Police Station, catching him red-handed while accepting a bribe of ₹3,000 to release a seized auto-rickshaw. The operation was launched after an alert citizen refused to pay the bribe and instead filed a complaint on the ACB’s toll-free helpline, 1064.

The accused has been identified as Sahdevsinh Jethibha Palania, 35, a Class-3 Police Constable assigned to the Surveillance Squad at Bapunagar Police Station.

According to ACB officials, the complainant’s auto-rickshaw had been seized by police on suspicion of its involvement in a local robbery. When the owner approached Constable Palania at the police station to inquire about releasing his vehicle, the officer allegedly demanded a payment of ₹3,000 to clear the matter and return the rickshaw.

Unwilling to yield to the illegal demand, the complainant contacted the ACB and lodged a formal complaint. Based on this information, the ACB planned a sting operation. The trap was set for Saturday at a public location near Bapunagar Crossroads.

As planned, the complainant met Palania on the road in front of the Sanskar Ice Cream Shop. After a brief conversation where the demand for the bribe was reiterated, the constable accepted the ₹3,000 from the complainant. An ACB team, lying in wait, immediately moved in and apprehended him. The bribe amount of ₹3,000 was recovered from the accused on the spot.

The successful trap was executed by a team led by Shri R.I. Parmar, Police Inspector of the Ahmedabad City ACB, under the direct supervision of Shri K.B. Chudasama, Assistant Director of the ACB Ahmedabad Unit.

The accused has been detained, and further legal proceedings under the Prevention of Corruption Act have been initiated. DeshGujarat