Corruption
Officer Breaks New Ground with ‘Bribes in Installments’ Scheme, Arrested
BAREILLY: A recent bribery case has come to light in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, where Mohammad Asif, a Senior Assistant Waqf official from the Minority Welfare Department, was caught accepting a bribe to expedite a pending file. The official allegedly demanded Rs 1 lakh from Aarish, associated with Madrasa Manjuriya Akhtarul Uloom, for the processing of a madrasa transfer from Rajpura to Vasundhara village.
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Sources reveal that Aarish, a resident of Thana Bahedi in Bareilly, had sought assistance from the department for six months, only to find his request repeatedly stalled. Asif, who allegedly had control over the file’s progress, demanded a hefty sum to move it forward. Unable to provide the full amount at once, Aarish agreed to pay in instalments, as suggested by the official.
Instead of complying silently, however, Aarish approached the Vigilance Department and reported the matter. Responding swiftly, the vigilance team devised a sting operation to catch Asif in the act. The plan was executed at the Minority Welfare Office in Bareilly’s Vikas Bhawan. Under the vigilance team’s careful watch, Aarish handed over the first instalment of Rs 18,000 to Asif.
As soon as the transaction took place, the vigilance team apprehended Asif, catching him red-handed. The accused official was taken into custody immediately, and a formal case was filed against him. He has since been remanded to judicial custody while an investigation is underway to uncover further details of this bribery case. The incident has raised concerns regarding corruption within the department and highlighted the vigilance team’s active role in curbing such misconduct.