Corrupt but 'kind'! Gujarat officials now allow victims to pay bribes in EMIs

A person unable to afford to buy a house, car or a valuable by making full payments usually avails a loan on EMIs. Corrupt officials are applying the same practice to bribes now.

Gujarat officials are taking bribe in EMIs to reduce the financial pressure on the victims, Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau has revealed.

ACB officials said the practice of taking bribe money in EMIs is gaining popularity in the state.

According to a Times of India report, the Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau said 10 such cases have already been reported this year alone.

The report said that in March, a bribe of Rs 21 lakh was demanded in a GST bogus billing scam, structured into 10 installments of Rs 2 lakh each and one installment of Rs 1 lakh to avoid the burden of a lump-sum payment.

On 4 April, a deputy sarpanch in Surat demanded Rs 85,000 to level a villager’s farm. Recognising the financial strain on the villager, the accused proposed an EMI option of Rs 35,000 upfront, with the remainder to be paid in three equal installments.

More recently, two policemen absconded with Rs 4 lakh bribe they had extorted from a Sabarkantha resident. This amount was merely the first installment of a total of Rs 10 lakh demanded by the corrupt officers.