Agent Arrested for Bribery in Land Resurvey Case
Bribery Allegations in Land Resurvey
The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has apprehended an agent accused of accepting bribes from survey officials to rectify errors in land resurveying. This information was disclosed by officials on Sunday.
The suspect has been identified as Hashim P.H., a resident of Uduma in Kasaragod district. An official reported that Hashim was caught red-handed on Saturday evening while accepting a bribe of ₹15,000 from the complainant at the Kanjangad mini civil station premises.
According to VACB officials, the complainant, who resides in Periya, Kasaragod, had his 2.40 acres of land mistakenly recorded as 1.89 acres following the resurvey.
Approximately six months ago, the complainant submitted an application to the Kanjangad Taluk Survey Office to rectify this error. At that time, Hashim, acting as an agent and preparing applications outside the survey office, drafted the complaint on behalf of the complainant.
Officials noted that although the survey officers conducted a site inspection later, no action was taken on the complaint even after six months. When the complainant returned to the survey office to inquire about the delay, he encountered Hashim again.
Hashim allegedly informed him that merely filing a complaint would not suffice and that the matter could only be resolved with a bribe to the officials. VACB officials stated that Hashim initially demanded ₹30,000, claiming he had good relations with the officials and had previously resolved similar cases through bribery.
After the complainant expressed his inability to pay that amount, Hashim reduced his demand to ₹20,000. It is alleged that Hashim accepted ₹5,000 via Google Pay as the first installment and requested the remaining ₹15,000 to be paid in cash on December 27. Instead of paying the bribe, the complainant contacted the Deputy Superintendent of Police at the Kasaragod VACB.
Based on the complaint, the vigilance team set up a trap and arrested Hashim on Saturday evening while he was accepting the ₹15,000. The accused is scheduled to be presented in court on Sunday. Officials also mentioned that the VACB is investigating the alleged collusion between Hashim and the survey officials.