Vigilance team nabs two excise officials in bribery case in Biswanath

Biswanath, June 6: In a major crackdown on corruption, the Directorate of Vigilance & Anti-Corruption, Assam, on Friday arrested a Deputy Superintendent and a Constable of the Excise Department in Biswanath district on bribery charges.

The arrested officials have been identified as Mormeshwar Das, Deputy Superintendent, and Abhijit Baruah, Constable and the duo was caught red-handed while accepting the bribe.

Furthermore, during a follow-up search at Das’s residence, the anti-corruption team recovered a sum of ₹2.63 lakh in cash.

The arrests were made following a complaint lodged by Diganta Borah, who had applied for a wine shop license in his wife's name.

According to the complaint, after the license was approved, the accused demanded a bribe of ₹1 lakh to allow the shop to open. The amount was later negotiated down to ₹50,000.

Both Das and Borah are currently being interrogated, and the investigation is ongoing at the Excise Department’s office.

Notably, Diganta Borah alleged that this was not the first instance of harassment. He claimed that Mormeshwar Das had also troubled him in the past over another wine shop license, repeatedly demanding money and liquor.

“He keeps demanding money from me. This time, he asked for ₹1 lakh, which was too much for me to bear. So I decided to approach the CM Vigilance team for help,” said the complainant, Diganta Borah.

The arrests of two excise officials in Biswanath underscore the Assam government's continued efforts to root out corruption within its departments.