A CORRUPT DATA OPERATOR ARRESTED, BEO WAS MISSING

A CORRUPT DATA OPERATOR ARRESTED, BEO WAS MISSING

18-DEC-ENG 1

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

SASARAM --------------------------In Rohtas, Bihar, a vigilance team from Patna, in a dramatic early morning operation, arrested a corrupt data operator red-handed with a bribe of Rs. 14,000 at his residence. The most significant aspect is that this corrupt data operator had been evading the vigilance team for the past three days, but finally, he was caught on Friday.

The vigilance team arrested Chandan Kumar Sharma, the data operator of Block Education Officer (BEO) Pranav Kumar of Akodhigola. He was caught red-handed accepting Rs. 14,000 from a teacher for salary fixation. The team then took him to Patna. The vigilance team also raided the BEO's residence in Gandhinagar, Dehri, but he was not found, and his mobile phone was switched off.

Bribe demanded from teachers for salary fixation: Vigilance DSP Vindhyachal Prasad said that Sunil Kumar, a teacher from Akodhigola, had complained to the vigilance department that Block Education Officer Pranav Kumar was demanding Rs. 15,000 for the salary fixation of 10 teachers in the area. The amount was finally settled at Rs. 14,000. This morning, when the Block Education Officer's data operator, Chandan Sharma, was accepting the Rs. 14,000 bribe from the teacher at his residence, the vigilance team apprehended him. Corrupt Data Operator Arrested

"The vigilance team received information that the block education officer's corrupt data operator was demanding a bribe of ₹14,000.  Based on this information, the vigilance team registered a First Information Report (FIR) and launched a raid.  Early this morning, the data operator was dramatically arrested from his residence," said Vindhyachal Prasad, DSP, Vigilance Investigation Bureau, Patna.

Action taken on a teacher's complaint: Later, the vigilance team also reached the residence of Block Education Officer Pranav Kumar in Dehri, but the education officer was found to be missing, with his mobile phone switched off. According to teacher Sunil Kumar, he is posted at Banka Middle School in Akodhigola. The BEO was demanding bribes through his data operator in exchange for fixing the salaries of special teachers.

"He was demanding ₹1,500 per person for 10 people. A complaint was filed with the vigilance department regarding this matter.  The vigilance team then reached Akodhigola and arrested data operator Chandan Kumar Sharma while he was accepting the ₹14,000 bribe," said Sunil Kumar Singh, the complainant teacher.