A major corruption case has surfaced at Walterganj Police Station in Basti district, where an Anti-Corruption Team arrested a police constable red-handed while accepting a bribe of ₹15,000. The money was allegedly being collected to allow trucks loaded with soil to pass unchecked. Meanwhile, the main accused in the case—the Station House Officer (SHO)—remains absconding.
According to the Anti-Corruption Team, the bribe amount was taken at the SHO’s official residence. The complainant, Manish Chaudhary, a soil trader, told investigators that a monthly “hafta” (illegal payment) of ₹5,000 per vehicle had been fixed. The ₹15,000 was being paid as an installment of this monthly extortion.
The constable was caught accepting the bribe at around 3:00 pm on Thursday. However, the FIR was registered only after a delay of nearly eight hours, at 11:49 pm. Sources claim the delay was due to attempts to shield the SHO. Notably, despite the SHO being clearly named in the Anti-Corruption Team’s report, immediate action was avoided.
It is reported that once the Anti-Corruption Team’s report went viral on social media, pressure mounted within the police department, forcing the authorities to finally register the case late at night.
