Two SMC staffers caught by ACB seeking bribe to process firecracker sales licence

Surat: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Monday arrested two Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) employees for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs. 11,000 in exchange for processing a firecracker sales licence at the Piplod-Athwa Zone office in Surat.

The accused have been identified as Vipulkumar Jayantkumar Joshi (56), a Class-3 sanitary inspector, and Shaileshbhai Kishanbhai Solanki (37), a Class-4 sanitation worker, both posted in Ward No. 37(A) of the Piplod-Athwa Zone.

According to the ACB, the complainant had applied for a licence to sell firecrackers at the ward’s health office. The accused allegedly demanded Rs. 11,000 to facilitate the processing of the licence.

Unwilling to pay the bribe, the complainant approached the ACB and lodged a complaint. Acting on the complaint, the bureau laid a trap on November 2.

During the operation, Solanki allegedly accepted Rs. 11,000 from the complainant at the behest of Joshi. The ACB team caught both employees and recovered the entire bribe amount of Rs. 11,000.

The trap was conducted by Police Inspector S.D. Dhobi of the Surat Rural ACB Police Station along with his team. DeshGujarat