Operation Spot Trap: More officials under VACB scanner

The Ernakulam wing of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has widened its surveillance over allegedly corrupt government officials based on a list prepared under the ‘Operation Spot Trap’ initiative.

The State-wide crackdown aims at catching such officials red-handed when they accept bribes for offering various services to the public. Swapna A., building inspector at the zonal office of the Kochi Corporation, who was arrested by the VACB while allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹15,000 from a builder at Ponnurunni on Wednesday (April 30), had figured in the list of officials under the scanner in the district.

“The VACB had prepared the list on the basis of complaints received from the public and follow-up investigations conducted by officials,” said S. Sasidharan, Superintendent of Police, VACB Ernakulam unit.

According to the government’s estimates, around 700 corrupt officials figure in the State-wide list prepared as part of the Operation Spot Trap project. Some of them had already been arrested, and prosecution measures had been initiated against them based on the inquiry carried out by the agency.

Mr. Sasidharan said an inquiry was in progress to confirm whether other officials at the zonal office of the civic body at Vyttila had colluded with Swapna to carry out similar illegal activities. He added that there was a pattern in the moves by corrupt officials. In the case of the woman arrested from Ponnurunni, she had demanded a bribe by alleging that there were violations in the construction of the multi-storey building. She had initially demanded ₹5,000 each for allotment of a building number, he said.

Mr. Sasidharan urged the public to expose corrupt officials by lodging complaints with the VACB. He said that stringent action would be taken against such officials.