IRCTC Western Zone Official and Kolkata Firm Director Arrested in Rs 4 Lakh Bribery Scandal
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has taken swift legal action by arresting a senior official from the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) Western Zone office located in Mumbai, alongside the director of a Kolkata-based private firm, in connection with a corruption and bribery case totaling approximately Rs 4 lakh.
Official reports indicate that the federal agency formally registered an active criminal case against the two primary accused individuals on July 22. Investigators allege that the public servant leveraged his official administrative authority and position within the IRCTC to grant undue favors to private entities, violating standard operational protocols and anti-corruption laws.
Cash Deposits and Digital Trails Tracked by Investigators
According to the detailed First Information Report (FIR), the compromised IRCTC official illicitly accepted payments amounting to Rs 1,98,500 on April 21, followed by another tranche of Rs 2 lakh on June 8. These illegal gratification amounts were directly deposited in cash into the official's Punjab National Bank account as a quid pro quo arrangement for expediting and clearing pending official bills submitted by Araha Hospitality Private Limited.
The ongoing probe revealed that an associate of the private company's director physically deposited the bribe money. Furthermore, enforcement teams recovered a bag containing cash directly from the accused corporate director. Digital forensics also played a pivotal role in the breakthrough, as investigators retrieved highly incriminating WhatsApp chat logs from the mobile devices of the accused parties.
Seizures and Separate EPFO Corruption Case
During coordinated search operations, the CBI successfully seized the physical cash trail, confiscated the smartphones of both suspects for forensic analysis, and impounded official files and pending billing documents submitted by Araha Hospitality Private Limited. Following their arrest on July 22, the accused were produced before a designated special court, which granted their custody to the agency through July 27 to uncover any wider bureaucratic nexus.
In a parallel crackdown on public corruption, the CBI apprehended an official from the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) at the Patiala district office on Wednesday while the individual was caught red-handed accepting a bribe of Rs 2.5 lakh. The FIR in that matter states the accused threatened the complainant with an adverse audit report and heavy financial penalties unless the illegal demand was fulfilled, highlighting a sweeping anti-corruption drive across national institutions.
