RTI activist accuses Ludhiana MC staffer of graft, holds protest
Says plumber accepted Rs 1,000 to hand over receipts for water connection fee; MC official recommends action against staffer.
A superintending (SE) engineer of the municipal corporation has recommended action against its registered plumber after an RTI activist accused him of demanding Rs 1,000 in bribe for providing him receipts for water connection fee.
Earlier, the complainant, Rohit Sabharwal, held a protest outside the office of MC commissioner Pardeep Sabharwal, who was not present there.
He lifted the protest after SE (operations and maintenance cell) Ravinder Garg assured him of recommending action against the plumber, Amrish Khanna.
“The MC commissioner has been apprised of the matter with the recommendation to cancel the plumber’s licence. The commissioner will take further action on it,” he added.
Rohit had alleged that he had paid Rs 19,820 for getting water connection of his two plots on Ferozepur Road on October 1, but was provided no receipts. Instead, his staff informed him that the registered plumber, Amrish Khanna, was demanding Rs 1,000 for handing over the receipts.
He alleged that on Thursday, Khanna asked his driver to reach near Dhami Eye Hospital to collect the receipts. He accompanied his driver and filmed Khanna accepting the money.
When confronted, Rohit said Khanna claimed the amount was collected as the file and plumber fees, while he got the connection set up through a private plumber.
The MC chief was not immediately available for comments. No police complaint has been filed.
