Personal secretaries of three Uttar Pradesh Cabinet ministers were arrested by a Special Investigative Team (SIT) after a news channel, in a sting operation, showed the trio seeking bribes inside Vidhan Sabha premises, NDTV reported on Sunday, 6 January.
According to the report, the said secretaries worked in the offices of Archana Pandey, the Mining, Excise and Prohibition Minister, Om Prakash Rajbhar, the Backward Classes Welfare Minister and Sandeep Singh, the Education Minister.
The arrests took place after the Yogi Adityanath government formed a Special Investigation Team headed by Additional Director General (Lucknow zone) Rajiv Krishnan.
“The personal secretaries of three UP ministers who were caught in a sting taking a bribe have now been arrested and sent to judicial custody. All angles are being probed.”Rajiv Krishnan, Additional Director General to ANI
In the sting operation conducted by ABP News, personal secretary of Rajbhar, Om Prakash Kashyap is purportedly seen seeking Rs 40 lakh for a transfer, while the personal secretary of Archana Pandey is allegedly seen striking a deal with the channel's reporter for getting him mining contracts in about six districts.
Santosh Awasthi, personal secretary to MoS Basic Education Sandeep Singh, is also seen in the sting operation allegedly working out a deal for a contract for books and seeking his own cut.
(With inputs from NDTV, ANI and PTI)
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