Chandigarh/New Delhi, Jan 23 (IANS): The CBI on Monday arrested a Superintendent and a clerk of the Punjab Transport Department for demanding and accepting a Rs one lakh bribe from an employee of the same department for clearing his dismissal matter, an official said.

A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team caught Superintendent Rajeev Kumar and clerk Jaswinder Singh red handed while accepting a bribe of Rs 50,000 each.

The agency's move came following a complaint against the accused persons by another employee of the Transport Department who had been dismissed over some allegations.

The complainant had approached the Special Secretary in the Punjab Transport Department, requesting him to cancel his dismissal order, a CBI official said.

"The Special Secretary cancelled his dismissal but directed for a re-enquiry. Subsequently, the accused Superintendent and the clerk of the Transport Department, who were dealing with the complainant's file, demanded a bribe of Rs 1.5 lakh from him to clear the matter.

"The accused informed the complainant that the orders would be passed against him if he failed to pay the bribe. However, the bribe amount was reduced to Rs one lakh," the CBI official said.

Searches were conducted on Monday at the residences of both the accused in Chandigarh and Mohali in Punjab, said the official, adding that both accused would be produced on Tuesday before the court in Chandigarh.