Rajkot: A special Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court has convicted a 72-year-old former police inspector then posted at Rajkot taluka police station in a 16-year-old bribery case, sentencing him to two years of rigorous imprisonment and imposing a fine of Rs 10,000.

The convict, Chandulal Gosai, was found guilty of demanding a bribe from a suspect during the investigation into the 2009 murder case of the sarpanch of Mota Mava village. According to the prosecution, Gosai had initially demanded Rs 15 lakh from Ramesh Makwana to exclude his name from the case, which was later settled at Rs 3.5 lakh.

Makwana allegedly paid Rs 2 lakh in advance but later approached the ACB after Gosai demanded the remaining Rs 1.5 lakh. Acting on the complaint, the ACB laid a trap and caught Gosai allegedly accepting the money inside his chamber at the police station.

During the operation, ACB officials recovered the marked currency notes, while a subsequent search of Gosai’s residence led to the seizure of Rs 3.31 lakh in cash.

During the trial, the defence argued that Gosai had been falsely implicated and claimed that Makwana had left the cash on the table, with the officer being caught while attempting to return it. However, district government pleader SK Vora argued that Gosai had repeatedly summoned Makwana to the police station, indicating ongoing negotiations over the bribe amount.

The prosecution also relied on scientific evidence, citing the presence of phenolphthalein powder traces on Gosai’s hands to establish that he had accepted the money. It further argued that the accused had not raised the claim of being framed at the stage when sanction was sought to file the chargesheet.

Special ACB Judge VA Rana, observing that the evidence strongly supported the prosecution’s case, convicted Gosai. Considering his age, the court sentenced him to two years of rigorous imprisonment. DeshGujarat