A ₹5-lakh bribe allegedly changed hands in Delhi, followed by a phone call to an enforcement officer at the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) Lucknow zonal office to confirm receipt of the money. But the call also set in motion the final leg of a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) operation that ended with the arrest of two ED personnel on Friday.
CBI's investigation
A CBI official familiar with the development said the agency first apprehended head constable Manoj Dwivedi in Delhi, moments after he allegedly accepted the money on behalf of enforcement officer Deepak Kumar, posted at the ED’s Lucknow zonal office.
Once Dwivedi called Kumar to inform him that the payment had been received, the CBI’s Delhi team moved in, while its Lucknow counterparts were alerted to act against the second accused, the official added.
The Lucknow team then reached the ED’s zonal office and arrested Kumar. The coordinated action in the two cities brought both personnel under investigation in a bribery case linked to an ongoing money-laundering probe.
The phone call reportedly provided the link between the alleged cash transaction in Delhi and the officer posted in Lucknow, enabling the CBI to move against both men in quick succession.
Bribe charges by complainant
The operation followed a complaint by the son of a man who had received two summonses from the ED in August and September 2026. The complainant alleged that Dwivedi, using his position in the agency, had demanded ₹5 lakh to secure relief for his father, including the removal of his name from the case.
{{/usCountry}}The operation followed a complaint by the son of a man who had received two summonses from the ED in August and September 2026. The complainant alleged that Dwivedi, using his position in the agency, had demanded ₹5 lakh to secure relief for his father, including the removal of his name from the case.
{{/usCountry}}The CBI registered a case on Friday (October 23) and laid a trap the same day. According to the agency’s statement, Dwivedi was caught red-handed while demanding and accepting ₹5 lakh on behalf of Kumar in return for extending a favour to the complainant’s father.
The agency’s account places Dwivedi at the centre of the alleged cash transaction, while the complaint attributes a role to Kumar as the officer for whom the money was purportedly collected.
The alleged sequence of events raises questions about how the money was to be used and what relief had allegedly been promised.
However, the CBI has not disclosed whether the demand was made directly by either official or through an intermediary. Nor has it clarified what contact, if any, took place between the two officials before the alleged payment.
Connection with money laundering case
The complaint was lodged after the man received two ED summonses in connection with a money-laundering case. His son subsequently approached the CBI, alleging that money had been sought in exchange for relief in the investigation. The CBI has not revealed the nature of the allegations against the father or the circumstances that led the agency to summon him.
The agency has also not disclosed details of the underlying money-laundering case or the specific relief allegedly promised in exchange for the money.
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It remains unclear whether the alleged bribe was intended to influence a particular investigative decision or secure a broader reprieve for the man under investigation.
The CBI said the investigation was continuing, and the allegations against both officials remain under investigation.