Maharashtra government suspends IAS officer Anil Ramod after arrest in corruption case

Following CBI's recommendation that Ramod should be suspended, Pune Divisional Commissioner Saurabh Rao had sent a proposal to the state government acting on which Prashant Sajanikar, Joint Secretary, issued the order on Wednesday.

Anil Ramod was arrested for seeking bribes to award higher compensation to farmers whose lands are being acquired for highway projects.

Listen to this article

00:00

1x 1.5x 1.8x

The Maharashtra Government has suspended IAS officer Anil Ramod after he was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) earlier this month while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 8 lakh.

Following CBI’s recommendation that Ramod should be suspended, Pune Divisional Commissioner Saurabh Rao had sent a proposal to the state government acting on which Prashant Sajanikar, Joint Secretary, issued the order on Wednesday.

Sajanikar said in the order since his arrest on June 9, Ramod has spent a period exceeding 48 hours behind bars and hence, as per sub-rule (2) A rule 3 of the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 1969, the officer is being placed under suspension. He said during Ramod’s period of suspension he will remain in Pune and will not leave without obtaining previous permission of the Divisional Commissioner, Pune.

It said he will not be allowed to accept any private employment or engage in any trade or business during his suspension. Any breach of these conditions will be treated as an act of misconduct rendering him liable for further disciplinary action, the order added.

Ramod is presently in jail after a special court rejected his request for bail on June 16, saying his ‘influence’ may hinder the probe and send a wrong message among the affected individuals.

Ramod was arrested for seeking bribes to award higher compensation to farmers whose lands are being acquired for highway projects.

A farmer whose case was pending for increased compensation for acquired land had approached the agency complaining Ramod allegedly demanded Rs 10 lakh from him for the increased compensation of around Rs 1.25 crore and finally negotiated the bribe amount at Rs 8 lakh.

CBI had earlier told the court that Ramod is a “habitual offender” and that during searches, it had recovered Rs 1.26 lakh in cash from his office cabin, and also seized Rs 6.64 crore and important documents during searches at his residence in Baner.