EPFO enforcement officer held for seeking bribe in Gurugram

Officers said that the victim wanted to shut his company down and had written to EPFO for release of provident fund of the company and its employees

The Haryana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Monday arrested an enforcement officer of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and a middleman for allegedly demanding a bribe from a businessman for settlement of penalty.

The arrest comes after the company owner filed a complaint at the deputy commissioner’s office of the vigilance department stating that the suspects were demanding ₹10 lakh to settle the penalty amount. (Representational image)

The suspects were identified as Manish Narang, enforcement officer, EPFO, and Ravi Kumar, a resident of Gurugram. Kumar was pressurising the owner of a company dealing in scrap to pay the bribe and threatened him of dire consequences if he did not pay, said officials.

The arrest comes after the company owner filed a complaint at the deputy commissioner’s office of the vigilance department stating that the suspects were demanding ₹10 lakh to settle the penalty amount. Jitender Kumar, the public relations officer of ACB, said an investigation was then initiated into the matter.

“Our team laid a trap and caught the two men accepting a bribe of ₹7.5 lakh red-handed They were booked under sections 7 and 7A of the Prevention of Corruption Act,” he said.

Kumar said that the victim wanted to shut his company down and had written to EPFO for release of provident fund of the company and its employees. “Narang had contacted the victim after he received his application and imposed a penalty of ₹20 lakh claiming violations of funds. He asked his friend Ravi Kumar, who acted as a middleman, to finalise a deal with the company owner. Kumar pressurised the complainant to pay the amount,” he said.

Officials added that the complainant was told that the matter would be settled if he paid 50% of the penalty amount and agreed on a bribe of ₹10 lakh.

A trap was accordingly laid, and the suspects were caught red handed accepting the bribe, police said, adding that searches were conducted at the suspect’s premises.