Kochi: Following the arrest of Kochi Corporation employee Swapna in a bribery case, the Vigilance Department conducted a raid at the Kochi Corporation office. Vigilance officials stated that all documents in the office would be thoroughly examined. They also mentioned that all building permits approved by Swapna would come under scrutiny.
Swapna was arrested on Wednesday by the Vigilance team while allegedly accepting a bribe for issuing a building permit. She had demanded ₹15,000 from a resident of Vyttila in Kochi for granting the permit. Due to widespread complaints of bribery in various zonal offices of the Kochi Corporation, Swapna had been under Vigilance surveillance.
The building permit application was submitted by the Kochi resident in January. However, Swapna kept delaying the process citing various reasons. Eventually, she allegedly told the applicant that the permit would only be issued if money was paid. The Vyttila resident then approached the Vigilance.
Acting on their instructions, Swapna was caught red-handed while accepting the money on her way to Thrissur with her family. The case has been registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
