The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Thursday registered a case against a police inspector and arrested his alleged aide for demanding and accepting a ₹2 lakh bribe from a man, reportedly by threatening to implicate him in a fabricated “love jihad” case under the Gujarat Freedom of Religion Act.
The accused were identified as Inspector V. A. Charan, posted at Padra police station in Vadodara Rural, and Sajid Ali Gulamrasul Syed, who was described as his associate.
According to officials, the case originated from a dispute between the complainant and his live-in partner, after which both were taken to the police station following a call to the emergency helpline. The man was placed under preventive detention based on the woman’s complaint, Indian Express reported.
ACB officials said that after the woman later indicated that the matter had been resolved and that she wished to take the man back home, the inspector allegedly demanded ₹6 lakh from him, warning that he would otherwise be booked under a “love jihad” case. When the man said he could not arrange the amount, the inspector is said to have involved Syed as a middleman.
Investigators indicated that Syed then pretended to negotiate on the man’s behalf and claimed to have reduced the demand to ₹2 lakh. Over the next few days, the accused allegedly continued to pressure the complainant to pay the amount or face legal action.
The complainant initially considered arranging the money by mortgaging gold ornaments but later approached the ACB. Acting on the complaint, officials laid a trap in Vadodara and caught Syed allegedly red-handed while accepting the bribe.
Authorities said Syed’s phone was seized, and a recorded conversation purportedly confirmed that the money had been received. While Syed has been arrested, Inspector Charan is reportedly absconding, and efforts are underway to locate and apprehend him.