The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested K C Joshi, principal chief material officer of North Eastern Railway (Gorakhpur), for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 3 lakh from a contractor, threatening to cancel company's government registration as well as a recent contract bagged by him if he fails to do so. The central agency also raided his Gorakhpur and Noida residences and recovered Rs 2.61 crore from there, said officials. "K C Joshi (principal chief material officer of North Eastern Railway, Gorakhpur) was arrested on Tuesday evening, while he was allegedly receiving a bribe of Rs 3 lakh from the contractor. The contractor had filed a complaint with the CBI, mentioning that his firm — which sells different products and provides services to the North Eastern Railway — had recently bagged a contract for providing it with three trucks on a contractual basis for Rs 80,000 per truck per month," said a CBI spokesperson, requesting anonymity. "The complainant alleged that Joshi had demanded a bribe of Rs 7 lakh from him, threatening to cancel his company's registration at the Government e-Marketplace portal as well as the recent contract bagged by him if he fails to do so," the spokesperson added. The CBI laid a trap and nabbed Joshi red-handed while he was accepting the bribe, and seized Rs 2.61 crore after raids at his two residences.
