HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, Aug 6: A special team of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption, Assam on Saturday caught Bhattadev University Registrar Dr Guruprasad Khataniar red handed from the city’s Chandmari area for taking bribe amounting to rupees fifty thousand. Registrar Dr Khataniar demanded rupees one lakh as bribe from a PWD contractor for releasing a running bill of rupees 32 lakh.
The Directorate said that Dr Guruprasad Khataniar had demanded a sum of rupees one lakh as bribe for releasing the bill for earth filling work at the University premises located in the Bajali district’s Pathsala area from the complainant. According to the Directorate, the complainant is a contractor under the PWD department.
Later on, Dr Khataniar reduced the demanded amount to rupees fifty thousand. The Directorate further said that the Executive Engineer, PWD (Building), Pathsala had prepared a running bill for earth filling work amounting to rupees 32 lakh and forwarded the same to the Registrar who kept the bill pending without any reason as alleged in the FIR.
“Unwilling to pay the bribe, the complainant approached the Directorate for taking needful legal action against the Registrar. Accordingly, a trap was laid on Saturday in Chandmari police station area, Guwahati by a team from the Directorate. Dr. Guruprasad Khataniar was caught red handed around 12:30 pm near the Guest House of the Assam Engineering Institute, Chandmari soon after he accepted the demanded bribe of rupees fifty thousand from the complainant,” the Directorate said.
Notably, the tainted bribe money has been recovered from the possession of Dr Guruprasad Khataniar in presence of independent witnesses and has been seized by the team. In this regard, a case has been registered in ACB Police Station on Saturday itself vide ACB P.S Case No – 24/2022 U/S 7(a) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018) against Dr. Guruprasad Khataniar.
