BAP MLA Patel Caught Taking ₹20L Bribe: ACB

The Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Rajasthan police on Sunday arrested a Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP) MLA Jaikrishn Patel while allegedly accepting ₹20 Lakh bribe from a mine owner at his official residence.

- Senjuti Sengupta

JAIPUR:

"The MLA was under our radar since April 4 following a complaint lodged by a mine owner, Ravindra Singh. On Sunday, ACB laid a trap and caught the MLA red-handed," said Ravi Prakash Meharda, director general of the ACB.

He further said that Patel had demanded ₹10 crore from the complainant for three questions regarding mining in Todabhim constituency in Karauli which was initially listed in the last assembly session. "The questions were regarding some mining leases. After submitting the questions, Patel approached Singh and asked to pay a ₹10 crore bribe to drop them. Later, the bribe was finalised at ₹2 crore after a negotiation which was decided to be paid in some instalments. Singh earlier paid ₹100,000 while visiting him in Banswara," Meharda said.

It was the second instalment that the complainant went to pay on Sunday when the agency arrested Patel red-handed from his MLA quarter in Jaipur's Jyoti Nagar. "We planned a thorough mission to trap him on Sunday. A prior permission was also taken from both Speaker Vasudev Devnani and chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma to conduct this mission and arrest the MLA," the official said.