A probe - a first in recent years - has been ordered in Muzaffarpur after a senior fire officer posted at the Muzaffarpur fire service station was accused of taking Rs 18,000 bribe to extinguish a blaze on a business premises last week.
Cloth trader Suresh Raushan's garments shop in Sutapatti, around 80km north of Patna, caught fire on March 13. He alleged that the officer, along with a person in uniform, demanded Rs 25,000 from him before tending to the fire.
"As the flames had already engulfed the shop located in the famous cloth market of Sutapatti, I had no option but to concede to their demand," Raushan told deputy superintendent of police (town) Ashish Anand, who has been assigned the task to probe the allegations. "I immediately handed over Rs 18,000 to the officials."
Director general-cum-commandant general of state fire services P.N. Rai on Sunday ordered a detailed investigation and asked the Muzaffarpur senior superintendent of police Vivek Kumar to submit a report. Vivek has assigned DSP (town) Anand the job to probe the allegations. "I have summoned the fire personnel in question to my office. I will submit my report to the SSP as soon as possible," Anand told The Telegraph over phone.
Raushan, one of the partners of Maruti Sarees, said the money was handed over to district fire officer Sunil Gupta and his assistant in the presence of a local ward councillor. The entire process was captured on a closed-circuit television (CCTV) camera installed in a nearby shop, he added.
Gupta denied the allegations levelled against him. "If any fire is reported, our men visit the site, do their job and return to the fire station. We have never received such a complaint," he said.
Raushan also claimed he complained to local police officers but nobody took notice. "I had no option but to seek the help of the media, which finally exposed the misdeeds of the fire officials," he said, after the CCTV camera footage was released on social media and local channels on Sunday.
DSP Anand said prima facie the allegations are true. "I have also sought the video footage from the CCTV of a local news channel to ascertain the role of the officials concerned. If found guilty, nobody will be spared," he said.
At present, 107 fire service stations are functional in the state. This is the first time in recent years that a corruption charge has been levelled at a fire official.
A team from the state headquarters of fire services also rushed to Muzaffarpur on Sunday evening to conduct an inquiry. Director general-cum-commandant general of state fire services Rai said action would be taken against the erring officials on the basis of the inquiry report.
The BJP jumped into the case with Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Prem Kumar demanding stern action against the officials. "The incident shows that corruption is at its peak in the Nitish Kumar-led Grand Alliance government in the state," he added.
