Ahmedabad: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) apprehended a public prosecutor of a civil court and his two accomplices, including a lawyer, on Tuesday night for allegedly taking a Rs 20 lakh bribe from a litigant in Ahmedabad’s Naroda area, the officials reported on Wednesday.
The public prosecutor at Kathlal civil court in Kheda district, Rajendra Gadhvi, was caught while accepting the bribe from the complainant. His associates — Suresh Patel, an Ahmedabad metropolitan court lawyer, and Vishal Patel from Naroda — were also arrested during an ACB operation at a local photocopy shop.
The case involves a complainant who filed a lawsuit at Kathlal civil court regarding a land purchase dispute. Gadhvi sought Rs 50 lakh to ensure a favourable verdict, demanding Rs 20 lakh upfront and the remainder after the court order. Gadhvi instructed the complainant to deliver the money to Suresh and Vishal at a Naroda shop in Ahmedabad.
The ACB set up a trap at the designated location, arresting Gadhvi and his two aides while receiving Rs 20 lakh from the complainant. Investigators seized nine diaries from the govt lawyer’s vehicle, documenting transactions worth lakhs of rupees, for which Gadhvi could not provide an explanation. The ACB is also analysing the telephone records of Gadhvi.
Gadhvi serves as a govt lawyer, primarily handling criminal cases, yet demanded a Rs 50 lakh bribe for a civil case. This raised questions about how many people he solicited bribes from, submitted the ACB before a court while producing him and two others. An intermediary decided to accept the bribe in his shop to assist the accused. The investigation needs to determine how many times bribes were taken and how much money they received to date.
The investigation requires thorough interrogation as both accused lawyers, being well-versed in legal procedures, were not cooperating, ACB told the court. Gadhvi’s tenure at Kathlal since 2019 necessitates scrutiny of previous financial dealings, assets, bank accounts, and potential safety deposit boxes, the corruption watchdog said.
Following the ACB’s arguments, the court remanded Gadhvi until Dec 14, while the two other accused were sent to jail.
