‘Sacked for negligence’: Gujarat livestock inspector caught taking Rs 22,000 bribe the next day (Lead)

Gandhinagar, Oct 31 (SocialNews.XYZ) The Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation had terminated the services of its outsourced livestock inspector, Jaydeepsinh Rajput, on October 29, a day before he was caught by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 22,000 from a cattle rearer, officials said on Saturday.

According to the civic body's clarification, Rajput, who was posted in its Cattle Nuisance Control Department (CNCD), was relieved of his duties at around 2 p.m. on October 29 for alleged negligence and failure to perform his assigned responsibilities effectively.

The municipal corporation said Rajput had been working on an outsourcing basis and had not taken effective action on complaints concerning stray cattle for a considerable period.

"His superiors had repeatedly drawn his attention to the shortcomings in his work, but no improvement was observed," the civic body said.

It added that, following instructions from higher authorities, his services were terminated on October 29 for negligence towards his duties.

The development comes amid an ACB trap operation against Rajput on October 30. The 22-year-old was caught allegedly accepting Rs 22,000 from a cattle-rearing businessman on a road behind a garden in Sector 28 of Gandhinagar.

According to the ACB complaint, Rajput had allegedly demanded money from the complainant in exchange for not catching his cattle and registering a case against him.

He initially sought Rs 40,000, describing it as an instalment for the Diwali festival. Following negotiations, the demand was reduced to Rs 22,000.

Unwilling to pay, the complainant approached the Gandhinagar ACB, which subsequently laid a trap. Rajput was allegedly caught accepting the entire Rs 22,000, which was recovered by the ACB team.

Source: IANS