Assam official arrested for accepting Rs 7,000 bribe in Dibrugarh

A government employee in Assam's Dibrugarh district was caught red-handed while accepting bribe money from a citizen seeking land mutation services, marking another successful anti-corruption operation by state authorities.

Hiren Nath, a Land Record Assistant at the Circle Officer's office in Moranhat Revenue Circle, was arrested on Monday after demanding Rs 50,000 from a complainant for processing land mutation documents. The citizen, unwilling to pay the illegal fee, reported the matter to the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption.

Acting on the complaint, anti-corruption officials set up a trap operation at Nath's office. During the sting, the accused official accepted Rs 7,000 as partial payment of the demanded bribe before being apprehended by the vigilance team.

"The tainted bribe money has been recovered from his possession and has been seized accordingly in the presence of independent witnesses," stated the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption in their official release.

Following his arrest, Nath was charged under Section 7(a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018). A case has been registered at ACB Police Station as Case No. 44/2025.

The operation was conducted by a specialised team from the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption, which continues to pursue legal proceedings in the matter. Land mutation, a standard government service for updating property ownership records, should be processed without any additional payments beyond prescribed fees.