Ludhiana: ESIC clerk held for taking ₹15,000 bribe

The Punjab vigilance bureau (VB) on Wednesday arrested a clerk posted at ESIC dispensary in Dhandari Kalan for allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹15,000 from a peon to clear his bills.

Official spokesperson of the state VB said the accused, identified Ravinder Singh, has been arrested on the complaint lodged by Rajwant Singh, a resident of Chankoian village in Ludhiana district, who is employed as a peon at Guru Harkrishan Public School in Doraha.

The complainant in his statement said that he had got medical treatment at DMC Hospital here and being a beneficiary of free medical treatment under ESIC scheme, his bills amounting to ₹478,136 were pending for clearance in the ESIC dispensary.

The complainant further alleged that the dealing clerk Ravinder Singh demanded ₹30,000 bribe in lieu of clearing his bills otherwise he would pass bills for the amount of ₹125,000 only out of the total amount. The accused clerk advised the complainant to give the bribe in two installments of ₹20,000 in advance and remaining ₹10,000 later.

He said that the accused also told the complainant that he has to further share the bribe with the concerned officer at Chandigarh also. The complainant also made a recording of his conversation with the accused in his phone and submitted it to the VB as evidence.

The spokesperson informed that after a preliminary investigation of the complaint, the VB range, Ludhiana, laid a trap and the said accused has been arrested while he was accepting ₹15,000 as a first installment of bribe from the complainant in the presence of two official witnesses.

A case under Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered. The accused would be produced in a court on Thursday and the role of other officials would also be probed during the investigation, he added.