The Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Monorail, Dr DLN Murthy was booked by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) earlier this week on allegations of bribery. Dr Murthy was caught on an audiotape demanding ₹20 lakh. The ACB clarified that the COO never accepted the money.
“The team that went to trap him [Murthy] has his recordings of demanding the bribe but he never accepted the money. This is called a non-materialised trap as the acceptance is not there. So based on the recordings, a case of demanding a bribe has been registered against him,” an ACB official said.
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“During the verification by the team which went along with the complainant posing as private persons, he was caught on tape asking for the money again, but he got suspicious and never accepted the bribe after which the case was registered against him based on the recording,” the officer added
Dr Murthy has been charged under the Prevention of Corruption Act based on the audiotape. Sources quoted by mid-day said that Monorail has launched its own investigation against Murthy.
The private company in question rendered services such as maintenance, customer services, cleaning, and housekeeping under a contract with Monorail. A bill of ₹2.5 crores plus a bank guarantee of ₹32 lakh was sent to Monorail by the company.
“After making multiple rounds to Murthy, the amount of ₹2.10 crore and ₹22 lakh bank guarantee were cleared by Monorail in the month of June this year,” the ACB statement read.
Meanwhile, ₹40 lakh and the bank guarantee worth ₹10 lakh was pending. This is when the complainants say Dr Murthy sought a bribe of ₹20 lakh. The company then approached the ACB against Murthy.
Also read - Thane's Global Hospital Took A Bribe Of INR 1.5 Lakhs From COVID-19 Patient
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