Former inspector gets 3 years' jail for Rs 1,000 bribe in Rajkot

RAJKOT: A retired circle inspector of district panchayat, now in his late seventies, will have to cool his heels in jail after being convicted in a bribery case lodged against him 19 years ago.
A special court in Rajkot sentenced Jaysukh Bharad to three years' imprisonment for taking Rs 1,000 as bribe. Bharad had sought bribe from complainant Arjan Khimaniya for giving a positive opinion regarding the conversion of land into non-agriculture (NA) in Vajdi village in 2004.
Interestingly, Bharad was convicted even as Khimaniya had turned hostile during the trial. The judge also issued him a notice asking as to why legal action should not be taken for wasting time of police and court.
Chickens came home to roost a retired circle inspector of district panchayat who will have to cool his heels in jail after being convicted in a bribery case lodged against him 19 years ago.
A special court in Rajkot sentenced Jaysukh Bharad, a former circle inspector, to three years imprisonment for taking Rs 1,000 as bribe and imposed a fine of Rs 8,000. Bharad, who is now in his late seventies, had sought bribe from the complainant Arjan Khimaniya for giving a positive opinion regarding the conversion of land into non-agriculture (NA) in Vajdi village in 2004. Interestingly, Bharad was convicted even as Khimaniya had turned hostile during the trial. Special court judge BB Jadav also issued show cause to the complainant in this regard.
Following Khimaniya's complaint, the anti-corruption bureau (ACB) laid a trap and caught Bharad red-handed with the bribe. During trial, Bharad's defence was that the complainant had borrowed money from an employee of the district panchayat. He claimed that the complainant had given him the money to be returned to the employee. Khimaniya also seconded Bharad's version during trial.
SK Vora, the district government pleader, said "During the trap, a 12-page inquest was prepared in which neither the accused nor the complainant mentioned that the amount accepted was to be handed over to another employee. Moreover, Bharad did not mention this fact when permission from a higher official was sought while filing of chargesheet as per the rule. The accused did not produce any witness on behalf of whom he accepted this amount. This proved that he had cooked up a story to avoid punishment."
Vora also urged the court to take punitive measures against Bharad for wasting prosecution, police and the court's time following which the judge issued a show cause notice asking why legal action should not be taken against him.