PANJIM: A former sarpanch of Assagao and present panch has been booked by Anti Corruption Bureau sleuth for demanding a bribe of Rs 6 lakh from a construction company to issue a construction licence, police said.
According to the ACB, a construction company had submitted a file to the Assagao panchayat on January 30, 2015, for obtaining a construction license after obtaining clearances from all departments such as Town and Country Planning and Health.
To find out what had happened to the file the project engineer went to the panchayat and met panch Victor D’Souza. At that time D’Souza demanded Rs 8 lakh from him. After a few days, D’Souza sent a message that the file would not be cleared if they send the project engineer again to the panchayat.
So the legal advisor met D’Souza and a deal of Rs 6 lakh for the issuance of the license was finalized.
According to the ACB officials, D’Souza gave the legal advisor a counter offer saying that he would give him a reward in case he finalized and got the amount from the company.
Besides this, the panch told him that the licence fees of Rs 70,000 would have to be paid in cash if they wanted the license.
On March 17 he called up the legal advisor from his cell phone, but he cut the call and called him back from his mobile phone. The panch called the applicant to his residence on March 19 at 4 pm with the bribe amount as well as the license fees and to pick up the licence.
“The call was recorded and the copy is with this office,” ACB SP Bosco George told media.
However, on March 19 at 12 pm there was a call saying please don’t come as the secretary was not there and to come to his house on March 23 at 11 am.
After completing all the formalities like marking the money and planning the raid, the ACB raiding team caught D’ Souza red handed Monday. He has been booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act and will be arrested, George told media.
