The Arunachal Pradesh Anti-Corruption Bureau has arrested a sub-inspector accused of demanding a bribe from a person seeking police documents required to file a claim before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal in Namsai district.
Vijay Kumar, officer-in-charge of Chongkham police station, was arrested at Mahadevpur on Saturday while allegedly accepting an initial payment of Rs 65,000, according to an official statement issued by the ACB. The bureau said it had registered a case against him on Friday after receiving a complaint.
The complainant alleged that Kumar had demanded Rs 1.5 lakh in exchange for documents needed to pursue the tribunal claim. These documents included the First Information Report, the police report known as Form 54 and the post-mortem examination report.
The ACB said it acted on the complaint by laying a trap. Kumar was allegedly caught while accepting part of the demanded amount. The report does not establish the final outcome of the case, and the allegations will be examined through the investigation and subsequent legal process.
The case highlights the role of police records in motor accident compensation proceedings. Documents prepared or held by the police can form part of the material required by claimants before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal. Any delay in obtaining them can affect a claimant’s ability to prepare and submit a case, although the ACB statement did not specify whether the complainant’s filing had been delayed.
The arrest also places attention on the frontline administrative interface through which citizens access public services. In this case, the alleged demand was linked not to a discretionary development project but to routine records connected with a compensation claim. Such records can be particularly important for families dealing with the aftermath of a death or serious road accident.
An ACB deputy superintendent of police said further investigation was under way. The bureau described the action as part of the government’s effort to curb corruption in the state machinery and urged citizens to report demands for bribes, extortion and other corrupt practices.
The bureau said complaints could be lodged at its office or sent through WhatsApp to 9436040055 or by email to spsic-vig-arn@gov.in. The investigation into the allegations against Kumar remains ongoing.
