Raipur
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) caught Poonam Chand Agrawal, Deputy Commissioner (Superintending Engineer) of the Chhattisgarh Housing Board, Ambikapur Circle, and Senior Assistant Grade-2 Anil Sinha for allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹65,000 on Thursday.
Ravi Kumar, a local contractor, filed a complaint on 20 January 2026 stating that the officials demanded money to clear pending payments. Kumar had completed construction of the New Tehsil Building in Daura Kuchli, Balrampur district, at a cost of ₹65 lakh and six additional classrooms at Kasturba Gandhi Residential School, Lundra, for ₹43.51 lakh in 2023.
Although the projects were finished, payments worth ₹28 lakh for the Tehsil building and ₹7.50 lakh for the school remained stuck. Agrawal allegedly demanded a bribe of ₹1 lakh to process the physical verification and time extension documents required for the final settlement. Following a verification of the complaint, Agrawal agreed to accept ₹60,000 for both projects.
During the trap proceedings, Agrawal directed the complainant to hand over the money to Anil Sinha, a Senior Assistant Grade-2 stationed in the Executive Engineer’s office. Sinha refused the initial amount, demanding ₹70,000 instead. After negotiations, he agreed to a sum of ₹65,000.
The ACB team provided the complainant with an additional ₹5,000 treated with phenolphthalein powder. Sinha accepted ₹65,000, kept ₹5,000 as his share in a table drawer, and delivered the remaining ₹60,000 to Agrawal in his private office. Agrawal placed the cash on his desk under a mobile stand.
ACB officials recovered the marked currency from both individuals. The authorities have registered a case against the two accused under Sections 7 and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018).
