THE THANE Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Wednesday trapped a circle officer posted with the tehsildar office for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs two lakh for not taking action against a Thane based building contractor. The accused, identified as Mahendra Patil (51), allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 10 lakh initially but reduced it to Rs six lakh. An ACB officer said the complainant in the case approached the probe agency saying he had taken permission from the tehsildar office for doing some digging work near Raymond company in Thane for a construction project. However, Patil approached him saying he had dug up more than the permitted area and threatened to send a fake report to his superiors, which would lead to the work being halted. Patil told the complainant he would not send a notice if he was paid Rs 10 lakh. The complainant, based on the ACB's instructions, negotiated with him and brought the amount down to Rs 6 lakh. He was asked to pay the first installment of Rs two lakh on Wednesday and another Rs four lakh on Saturday. The ACB told him to continue negotiating and agree to pay the amount on Wednesday. On Wednesday afternoon, as Patil asked the complainant to make a payment to his accomplice, one Wajid Malak, an ACB team detained the duo. An officer said the two were placed under arrest. Sources said that during the conversation between Patil and the complainant, other names were mentioned, which will be probed further.
