Anantnag, Jammu and Kashmir: The Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has apprehended a Special Police Official (SPO) attached to the Police Station Larnoo in Anantnag district for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 18,000.
Information was available with The Chenab Times that Imtiyaz Ahmad Bhat, the accused SPO, was trapped and arrested on March 29, 2026, following a complaint lodged by a local resident. The complainant had approached the ACB after Bhat allegedly demanded a bribe for the release of vehicle documents.
According to the complaint, the incident occurred on March 26, 2026, when the complainant was driving his load carrier from Mati to Badihar and was stopped by a police naka party at Badihar Bridge. The police party searched the vehicle and checked its documents but did not return them to the driver. The complainant was subsequently instructed to report at Police Station Larnoo the following day.
On March 27, 2026, the complainant visited Police Station Larnoo and met SPO Imtiyaz Ahmad Bhat. Bhat initially demanded Rs 30,000 for the release of the vehicle documents. This demand was later reduced to Rs 25,000 over the phone and eventually settled at Rs 18,000.
The complainant, unwilling to pay the bribe, escalated the matter to the Anti-Corruption Bureau for legal action against the official.
Upon receiving the complaint, the ACB initiated a discreet verification process. The verification confirmed the demand for a bribe by the government employee. Consequently, a case, FIR No. 03/2026, was registered at the ACB Police Station Anantnag under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, as amended by the 2018 Act. An investigation was launched into the matter.
A trap team was constituted as part of the investigation. The team successfully laid a trap and apprehended Imtiyaz Ahmad Bhat, identified by his number 176/SPO, from Police Station Larnoo, Anantnag. Bhat, son of Khazir Mohammad Bhat and a resident of Batpora Larnoo, Kokernag, Anantnag, was caught red-handed while demanding and accepting the bribe amount. He was arrested on the spot, and the bribe money was recovered from his possession in the presence of independent witnesses.
Following the arrest, searches were conducted at the residential houses of the accused police official. These searches were carried out in the presence of executive magistrates and independent witnesses.
Further investigation into the case is ongoing.
The Chenab Times News Desk