Bank inspector arrested for taking bribe
Maharashtra State Transport Bank inspector Rahul Pujari was arrested for accepting a ₹1.10 lakh bribe to falsify an employee's attendance report.
An official working at the Maharashtra State Transport Bank has been arrested for accepting a bribe of ₹1.10 lakh. The incident was reported on January 11 in Kolhapur, said police.
The accused has been identified as Rahul Ramesh Pujari, 43, working as a bank inspector at Maharashtra State Transport Bank, Kolhapur branch.
The complainant worked as a clerk at the Pandharpur branch of the same bank. He was absent from work for almost 185 days between July 2022 and June 2023. During this period, the clerk falsely claimed attendance for said days.
Pujari was assigned to investigate the issue. During the inquiry, Pujari asked the employee for ₹2 lakh to speed up the process and submit the report in favour of the complainant. After negotiation, Pujari agreed to take ₹1.60 lakh. He received ₹50,000 from the employee and submitted the report in favour of the complainant. On November 30, 2024, the employee was reinstated in the Mumbai central office of the bank.
The ACB verified the complaint on January 6 and they found it is valid. Accordingly, ACB laid the trap at Ruikar Colony in front of the Bank of Baroda in Kolhapur and Pujari was caught accepting the remaining amount of the bribe.
A case has been registered against Pujari at Shahupuri police station, under sections 7, 7 a of the Prevention of the Corruption Act 1988.
