LUCKNOW, Dec. 9 -- The Uttar Pradesh vigilance establishment, Meerut sector, on Tuesday arrested Shamli's assistant commissioner of stamps Ravindra Mehta and office clerk Ashwani red-handed while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs.1 lakh, vigilance authorities said in an official statement. The trap was laid following a written complaint from a local resident who accused the two officials of demanding the money to settle a stamp duty dispute, they added.

According to vigilance officials, the complainant had purchased 26 bighas of land on June 15, 2024, for Rs.90 lakh in the names of his wife Sangeeta and sister-in-law Neelam from one Sharmila, a resident of Hath Choya village in Unn tehsil, Shamli. The property was valued at Rs.1.04 crore...