The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday arrested a senior civil judge of Delhi’s Tis Hazari court on bribery charges in a property case, reported IANS. A special court remanded Rachna Tiwari Lakhanpal in 14 days of judicial custody. Her husband and advocate Alok Lakhanpal and lawyer Vikas Mehan have also been arrested and remanded in police custody for two days.
The investigating officers found Rs 94 lakh in cash in the Lakhanpals' Gulabi Bagh residence, reported The Hindu. “Two locker keys and other incriminating material and documents were also found during the search,” said CBI spokesperson RK Gaur.
According to the complainant, Rachna Lakhanpal, who was adjudicating a property dispute case, had appointed Mehan as the local commissioner to conduct an inspection, reported The Indian Express. Gaur said Mehan allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 2 lakh for himself and Rs 20 lakh for Lakhanpal so that the verdict in the case would be in the complainant’s favour.
The CBI then laid a trap to catch Mehan. He had accepted Rs 5 lakh as bribe for the judge. “Subsequently, the bribe money was delivered by the advocate [Mehnan] to the said judge at her residence, out of which the said judge kept Rs 4 lakh and gave Rs 1 lakh to the advocate,” said Gaur. Later, the investigating officials found out about Alok Lakhanpal’s role as well.
The lawyers for the accused, however, deemed it as a conspiracy and moved a bail application, which will be heard on October 3.
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