Haryana civil service officer Meenakshi Dahiya denied bail
On May 29, the Anti-Corruption Bureau booked fisheries department joint secretary Meenakshi Dahiya and arrested senior scale stenographer Joginder Singh and peon Satyendra Singh while accepting ₹1 lakh as a bribe
A handwritten note, which recorded a conversation of seeking a bribe and ownership of a two-wheeler on which peon-cum-watchman went to collect a bribe of ₹1 lakh from a district fisheries officer, led to the dismissal of the anticipatory bail of Meenakshi Dahiya, a 2013 batch Haryana civil service (HCS) officer.
“Dahiya is an officer of the rank of joint secretary and complainant Rajan Khora is subordinate to her. In the above circumstances, it is quite likely that Dhaiya would make all efforts to exert pressure upon the complainant to dissuade him from supporting the prosecution case,” ruled the court of additional district and sessions judge Sunil Kumar, while dismissing her anticipatory bail on June 21.
On May 29, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) booked fisheries department joint secretary Meenakshi Dahiya and arrested senior scale stenographer Joginder Singh and peon Satyendra Singh while accepting ₹1 lakh as a bribe. Dahiya is yet to be arrested. ACB said Dahiya had demanded the said bribe instead of removing charge sheet orders against the complainant Rajan Khora working as a district officer with the fisheries department.
“Dahiya being a public servant performed her public duty improperly in anticipation of accepting the amount of ₹1 lakh from the complainant after passing the order dated April 16, dropping the charge sheet against the complainant,” ruled the court.
Dahiya’s plea of being “victimised” failed to convince the court that said, “the arguments that Dahiya was left with no discretion after passing the order by fisheries minister, the government of Haryana, are also not convincing because it was Dahiya who was to pass a formal order dropping the charge sheet against the complainant and it is due to this reason that she struck a deal through her Stenographer Joginder Singh with the complainant for the amount of ₹1 lakh accepted on her behalf by her Peon Satinder Singh at her instructions on May 29.”
ACB said Dahiya on May 22 met the complainant in the parking lot of Pallavi Hotel where a party on superannuation was organised. At that time, Dahiya handed over a slip in her handwriting to the complainant bearing the name and mobile number of her peon, Satinder Singh, with the instructions to the complainant to hand over the amount of ₹1 lakh to Satinder after making a WhatsApp call to him before the meeting with him. Satinder had gone to collect the bribe amount on the two-wheeler owned by Dahiya.
The court order pointed out, “If Dahiya had not given the slip in her handwriting bearing the name and contact number of her Peon Satinder Singh, the complainant would have no occasion to acquire knowledge about the contact number or name of said Satinder Singh.”
The court also pointed out, “Satinder Singh would not have dared to come on the Scooty of Dahiya to collect the amount of ₹1 Lakh from the complainant. The material on the police file prima facie shows that the applicant/accused has not been implicated falsely in the instant case.”
