Shimla, Nov 27,
In a significant crackdown on corruption, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner and an Enforcement Officer of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), Baddi, Solan district (Himachal Pradesh), along with a private consultant. The arrests were made for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of ₹10 lakh to settle a provident fund dispute favorably.
The CBI registered a case on November 24, 2024, based on allegations that the Enforcement Officer had demanded an illegal gratification of ₹10 lakh through the private consultant. This amount was purportedly intended for himself and other senior EPFO officers to resolve a pending provident fund demand against the complainant’s firm. The accused allegedly threatened that failure to pay the bribe would result in a recovery demand of ₹45-50 lakh.
Acting swiftly, the CBI laid a trap and apprehended the private consultant red-handed while accepting the bribe. The amount included ₹5 lakh in cash and self-cheques worth ₹5 lakh. During the trap proceedings, evidence also implicated the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner. All three individuals were arrested and produced before the Special Judge for CBI Cases in Shimla.
Subsequent searches at the residences and offices of the accused in Baddi (Solan), Shimla, and Chandigarh uncovered approximately ₹23.5 lakh in cash and several incriminating documents at the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner’s premises in Chandigarh.
The investigation is ongoing, stated a CBI spokesperson.
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