Surat Municipal Corporation Officers Caught Taking ₹11,000 Bribe For Firecracker Licence

Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) officials caught a Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) Sanitary Inspector and a sanitation worker red-handed while accepting an ₹11,000 bribe in Piplod on Monday.

The action followed a trap laid by the ACB after a local resident reported that municipal staff were demanding money to process a firecracker sales licence.

Firecracker Licence Process Delayed Over Bribe Demand

The complainant had filed an official application at the Ward No. 37(A) Health Office in Piplod, falling under SMC’s Athwa Zone, seeking authorization to sell firecrackers ahead of the festive season. Instead of clearance through standard administrative steps, officials stalled the paperwork and demanded ₹11,000 in cash as an illegal gratification fee.

Refusing to yield to the extortion demand, the applicant immediately filed a formal complaint with the Surat Rural ACB station. Acting on the information, Police Inspector S.D. Dhobi and his team arranged a successful sting operation directly inside the municipal health office premises.

ACB Trap Catches Officials Red-Handed

During the coordinated trap on 2 November 2026, Ward 37(A) Sanitary Inspector Vipul Joshi (56), Class-3, instructed Class-4 sanitation worker Shailesh Solanki (37) to collect the cash on his behalf. ACB operatives moved in as soon as Solanki took possession of the illegal payment from the complainant.

Officers recovered the full ₹11,000 bribe money from the scene and detained both SMC employees under relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.