Clerk Held With ₹15 Lakh Bribe; Judge Allegedly Kept Calling, Unaware Of ACB Arrest

An Additional Sessions Judge is under ACB investigation after his clerk was caught taking a ₹15 lakh bribe allegedly on his behalf, leaving the judge unaware of the trap until the next day.

ACB probe intensifies after a clerk is caught accepting a ₹15 lakh bribe allegedly meant for an Additional Sessions Judge.

Source : ABPLIVE AI

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In a dramatic turn of events inside Mumbai’s judicial corridors, an Additional Sessions Judge has been named as an accused in a major bribery investigation. The development surfaced only after his clerk-cum-typist, Chandrakant Vasudev, was caught in an Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) trap for allegedly accepting a ₹15 lakh bribe said to be collected on the judge’s instructions. At the time of the trap, the judge had reportedly been unaware of his employee’s arrest and even tried reaching him the following morning before leaving for court.

Judge Tried Reaching Clerk, Unaware Of Arrest

According to officials familiar with the case, the judge contacted Vasudev several times early the next day, sending messages and making phone calls in an attempt to understand his whereabouts. It was only later that he learned the clerk had been taken into custody the previous evening.

Investigators said the judge had been outside the city when Vasudev allegedly informed him that the bribe money had been received from a litigant connected to a matter the judge was presiding over. As per the ACB statement, the judge confirmed the information during the call and advised the clerk to meet him the following day.

Meanwhile, the ACB secured approval on Thursday to conduct a search at the judge’s official residence. However, when officials reached the government quarters at Churchgate, they found the door locked. The team sealed the entrance and deployed a constable at the spot while they awaited further permission from higher authorities to proceed with possible arrest action. A separate search was also carried out at Vasudev’s Uran residence.

Complainant Approached ACB After Bribe Demand Escalated

This case marks the second instance within a year where a sitting or former judge has faced corruption allegations. In December last year, Additional Sessions Judge Dhananjay Nikam from Satara was accused of demanding ₹5 lakh from a woman for her father’s bail; his services were later terminated by the Bombay High Court.

In Wednesday’s statement, the ACB confirmed Vasudev’s arrest after he was caught red-handed accepting ₹15 lakh from a complainant. He allegedly admitted that he was taking the money on behalf of the judge handling the ongoing dispute.

The case traces back to a petition filed by the complainant’s wife in 2015 related to alleged forcible possession of their company’s land. As the Bombay High Court does not hear matters valued under ₹10 crore, the case was transferred in March 2024 to a civil sessions court, where the accused judge was overseeing the proceedings.

Investigators revealed that in September, Vasudev allegedly approached the complainant and demanded ₹25 lakh in exchange for a favourable court order. When the complainant refused, the clerk reportedly continued contacting him multiple times.

During the operation, ACB instructed him to proceed as originally planned, call the judge and confirm the money had arrived. In the recorded conversation, the judge acknowledged it and said he was out of town, advising the clerk to deliver the cash the next day. Based on this evidence, the judge was officially named as an accused.

Vasudev was produced before the court on Wednesday evening and has been remanded to police custody for five days.

Reluctant to pay the bribe, the complainant then turned to the ACB. After verifying his allegations, officers laid a trap on Tuesday evening with dummy currency notes totalling ₹15 lakh. As soon as Vasudev accepted the amount, he was detained.