Forest staff held for demanding bribe to release salary dues

A junior assistant of theForest Department in Vellore was arrested by sleuths of Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) for demanding and taking a bribe of ₹10,000 from the wife of a deceased forest guard to release pending salary dues.

DVAC sources said that the complainant J. Shanthi, 55, is wife of deceased Jayavel, a resident in Ranipet. Jayavel served as forest guard in Puttuthakku RF in Ranipet district before he retired in 2022. His salary was revised under the Seventh Pay Commission. However, the revised salary dues were not released to him.

After his retirement, Jayavel used to visit the divisional office of Forest Department in Vellore to seek the release of revised salary dues of ₹2.18 lakh for the years between 2012 and 2022.

Officer demands bribe

As he died in 2024, Santhi, Jayavel’s wife, had been frequenting the divisional forest office to claim the dues. She requested Elumalai, junior assistant at the office, to clear the documents related to pending dues of her husband.

However, Elumalai allegedly demanded a sum of ₹10,000 for the purpose.

Unwilling to pay the bribe, Shanthi lodged a complaint with the DVAC. A seven-member team led by K. Sankar, Deputy SP, DVAC (Vellore), laid a trap and caught Ellumali. A case has been registered against him. A probe is under way.