Vigilance Bureau arrests RTI activist in bribery case

The Vigilance Bureau (VB) has apprehended RTI activist Suresh Kumar Sharma, a resident of Chheharta in Amritsar, for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 4 lakhs.

Sharma was caught red-handed while accepting the bribe in the presence of two official witnesses.

According to the VB, Sharma was acting as an agent for the Municipal Town Planning (MTP) Department, filing RTI applications against applicants to extort money and then withdrawing them in connivance with Municipal Corporation officials. The VB received a complaint from Paramdeep Singh of Basant Avenue, who alleged that Sharma demanded a bribe to withdraw an RTI application filed against Singh's building project on Railway Link Road.

The complaint stated that Singh had constructed a shop after demolishing an existing structure and obtained approval for one floor from the MTP Department. When he applied for additional construction, his revised plan was rejected twice by Assistant Town Planner Parminder Singh. Sharma then filed RTI applications against the building under different names and demanded a bribe of Rs 7 lakhs to withdraw the complaint, later settling for Rs 4 lakhs.

A case has been registered against Sharma under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The VB has appealed to those who were blackmailed by Sharma to come forward, stating that several victims have already approached them and facts are being verified.

Further investigation is ongoing, and more arrests may be made.