Tamil Nadu: ED officer arrested for taking Rs. 20L bribe
Tamil Nadu's Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) arrested a senior Enforcement Directorate (ED) officer in Dindigul for allegedly accepting Rs. 20 lakh bribe from a government doctor on Friday. The accused officer, Ankit Tiwari, has been sent to judicial custody till December 15. Following his arrest, the DVAC searched the ED's Madurai office and Tiwari's residence. Moreover, an investigation reportedly found that more officers from Madurai and Chennai might be involved in the case.
Bribe sought to close previous case
Tiwari (32) contacted Dr. Suresh Babu, chief civil surgeon at the Government Medical College Hospital, Dindigul, last month about a previously closed DVAC case. He claimed the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) asked the ED to reopen it, per India Today. He allegedly asked the doctor to report to the ED's Madurai office on October 30 for further investigation. Tiwari allegedly demanded Rs. 3 crore bribe to close the investigation but later agreed to reduce the amount to Rs. 51 lakh.
How ED officer was caught
Dr. Babu reportedly went to the ED office on October 30, but Tiwari did not allow him to meet officials. On November 1, he gave the first installment of Rs. 20 lakh to Tiwari. The ED officer then started blackmailing him, demanding the full amount. However, the doctor suspected Tiwari's motives and filed a complaint with DVAC's Dindigul unit on Thursday. On Friday, Tiwari was caught red-handed while receiving the second installment of Rs. 20 lakh from the government employee.
What DVAC officials said about case
Initial investigations found Tiwari abused his authority as an ED officer. DVAC Deputy Superintendant J Nagarajan said Dr. Babu narrated the whole incident to the DVAC, which gave him chemical-coated currency notes to give to Tiwari, per The New Indian Express. "On Friday, the sleuths caught Tiwari red-handed and arrested him after he took the money...at Kodai Road toll plaza," he added. Notably, the doctor was booked in a disproportionate assets case for running a private hospital in 2018.
Tiwari sent to judicial custody till December 15
Following his arrest, Tiwari was questioned by the DVAC for more than 12 hours at its Dindigul headquarters. Tiwari has been sent to judicial custody till December 15. Meanwhile, DVAC agents raided his Madurai home and confiscated two laptops and other electronic equipment. As they started the search at Tiwari's office, some ED advocates tried to stop them, saying the DVAC needed a court warrant to search, but the sleuths cited rules saying no court order is needed, per TNIE.
