Rajkot, Aug 12 (IANS): Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Monday arrested Anil Kumar Maru, the Chief Fire Officer in charge of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation, while accepting a bribe of Rs 1.80 lakh.

The officer had demanded a bribe in exchange for issuing a Fire No Objection Certificate (NOC) for a building in Rajkot.

“Citizen working in the fire safety fitting business approached the ACB after being asked to pay an illegal bribe by the accused officer. Initially, Anil Kumar demanded Rs 3 lakh for the NOC, of which the complainant had already paid Rs 1.20 lakh. However, when the officer insisted on the remaining Rs 1.80 lakh within four to five days, the complainant decided to report the matter to the Jamnagar ACB,” an ACB official said.

He said that the operation was led by Police Inspector R.N. Virani of the Jamnagar ACB Police Station, under the supervision of K.H. Gohil, In-charge Assistant Director of the ACB Rajkot Unit.

“We set up a trap at the office of the Chief Fire Officer in Rajkot’s Central Zone and during the operation, Anil Kumar was caught red-handed while accepting the remaining bribe amount,” the ACB official said.

He added that the entire sum of Rs 1.80 lakh was recovered on the spot and the officer was arrested for abusing his position and engaging in corrupt practices.

On May 25, a massive fire broke out at TRP Game Zone in Rajkot in which 27 people were killed, mostly children. The then Rajkot Chief Fire Officer, Ilesh Kher, was arrested for alleged negligence that led to the massive fire.

Kher was succeeded by Anil Maru, who was also caught red-handed by the Gujarat ACB while accepting a bribe.

Opposition Congress has already raised alarms, demanding stricter actions against such officers who compromise public safety for personal gain.