Rs 1 cr seized from village official: 'No evidence' to link Suresh Kumar to other officers

Palakkad: The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has not been able to prove that V Suresh Kumar, the village official caught for accepting a bribe, is linked to other officials working at the same office.

The vigilance wing of the Kerala Police recovered cash and bank deposit documents worth more than Rs 1 crore during a search at his rented accommodation in Mannarkkad town.

There is no evidence to support that Kumar handed over the bribe to the village officer, according to the agency. After examining his phone records, vigilance sleuths discovered that Kumar did not wire the money to anyone, not even to his closest relatives.

The vigilance department has sought his custody for further interrogation.

Meanwhile, the district collector on Wednesday suspended Kumar as field assistant at Palakkayam village. 

The suspension is effective from the date of his arrest. The collector suspended the official based on the Kerala Civil Services (Classification, Control & Appeal) Rules 1960.

The VACB arrested Suresh Kumar, hailing from Malayinkeezhu in Thiruvananthapuram, following an undercover operation.

The 50-year-old was nabbed while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 2,500 on Tuesday morning.

Following his arrest, vigilance sleuths conducted a search of his rented room and recovered more than Rs 35 lakh in cash, documents of fixed deposits at banks amounting to around Rs 45 lakh and Rs 25 lakh from his salary account.

Besides, 17 kg of coins were seized from the room. VACB officials said the cash and coins were found in cardboard boxes and plastic bags and all these are suspected to have been amassed through bribes.