Forest guard caught taking bribe

NEW DELHI: A forest department guard was caught red-handed by the anti-corruption branch (ACB) on Thursday accepting a `40,000 bribe from a landscaping consultant who wanted to cut two trees in west Delhi’s Moti Bagh area.

The guard, Dinesh Kumar, 48, was arrested under sections of the prevention of corruption (POC) Act, said senior ACB officials. Suspecting the connivance of senior forest officials with Kumar, ACB sleuths are interrogating him to unearth the racket. Landscaping consultant Sunil Tomar had approached the forest guard, posted at the office of deputy conservator of forests (west), seeking his help to get permission to cut two trees. The forest guard demanded `2 lakh as bribe from Tomar and assured him official permission from the forest official concerned.

Tomar called the anti-corruption branch on its helpline number 011-23812905, started in July 2015 by ACB chief Mukesh Kumar Meena after he scrapped the previous anti-graft helpline 1031 claiming it was of ‘no use’.

He informed the ACB sleuths about the illegal gratification demand by the forest department staff. Tomar furnished proof to support his allegations, ACB sources said. In his complaint, Tomar claimed that a west Delhi-based private company dealing in automobiles wanted to open a car showroom in Moti Bagh area. The company had given Tomar the beautification contract at the property where the showroom was to come up in the coming months. “Tomar told us that two trees on the property were creating a hindrance for them and they wanted to remove the trees.He filed an application at the forest department and sought permission for cutting down the two trees.