Guwahati: Dhemaji divisional forest officer Mahat Chandra Talukdar, who was caught red-handed taking a bribe in his office on July 13 last year, was sentenced to five years in jail and fined Rs 45 lakh on Thursday.

Additional special public prosecutor Nabasmita Gogoi said the court of special judge, Assam, Alokeswar Bhattacharyya, convicted him under Sections of 7 and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

He was sentenced to undergo four years' imprisonment and fined Rs 20 lakh under Section 7 and five years' imprisonment with a fine of Rs 25 lakh under Section 13 (2).

Talukdar, however, will have to remain in jail for five years since both the sentences will run concurrently.

Though he was also charged under Section 51 of the Wildlife Protection Act following recovery of wildlife parts from his house, the court acquitted him of this charge since the prosecution failed to prove it beyond reasonable doubt.

Talukdar had pleaded before the court for leniency saying he was the sole breadwinner of his family and he as well as his wife are suffering from a number of ailments. He also told the court that he has an unmarried daughter.

Altogether 24 witnesses were examined by the prosecution in this case. Due to timely submission of the chargesheet and expeditious trial the order could be delivered within 17 months. He was one of the first government officers to be arrested on corruption charges when the Sarbananda Sonowal government launched a crackdown on corruption after coming to power in May last year.

Talukdar, however, claimed to be innocent and said he had become victim of a conspiracy. He said he would appeal against today's order in Gauhati High Court.

After his arrest by the vigilance and anti-corruption bureau, a search conducted at his residence in Guwahati led to the recovery of over Rs 2 crore in cash and gold ornaments weighing 950gm.

A tiger skin and a deer skin, ivory (elephant tusk) weighing around 250gm, some Bhutanese and Nepalese currency and bank passbooks and documents pertaining to investments made by Talukdar were also seized during raids carried out by the vigilance and anti-corruption sleuths at his Dhemaji and Guwahati residences.

The court ruled that if he failed to pay the fine, he will have to under imprisonment for another year.