Guwahati, March 28: Secretary of Assam irrigation department Kujendra Doley today landed in police net for allegedly demanding and accepting bribe from a contractor for clearing his pending bills.

An official source said a team of vigilance and anti-corruption sleuths caught him "red-handed" while accepting Rs 15,000 in cash from the contractor at his office chamber in Dispur this afternoon.

Around Rs 54 lakh was seized during searches conducted at his office and residence, which are continuing till the filing of this report.

According to the source, Doley had demanded Rs 80,000 from the contractor for clearing his total pending bills of Rs 30 lakh.

"The contractor lodged a complaint against Doley at the directorate of vigilance and anti-corruption here yesterday. Subsequently, a trap was laid and the accused was caught red-handed while taking the first instalment of Rs 15,000 at his office chamber today," the source said.

He said during a search conducted at his office, Rs 3.5 lakh in cash was recovered from a drawer and Rs 41 lakh was found inside a locker.

The sleuths had to break open the locker as Doley could not provide the keys.

"The money has been seized on suspicion of being ill-gotten wealth," the source said.

During the search conducted by the vigilance sleuths at his fifth floor apartment in Paramount Greens on VIP Road in Six Mile, Rs 10 lakh in cash was found and the search was still on.

The source said as part of the trap, the complainant was given currency notes laced with a chemical, which cannot be seen with naked eye, to give it to Doley.

"When he accepted the chemical-coated notes from the complainant, the vigilance officials entered his office chamber and made him wash his hands with water. Soon his palms turned red because of the presence of the chemical, which proved that he had accepted the money from the complainant," the source said.

"A case under appropriate sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, will be registered against him. He is likely to be produced before the court of special judge, Assam, tomorrow," the source said.

The source said earlier a departmental inquiry was ordered against Doley for alleged falsification of records and misappropriation of government money when he was the executive engineer of the District Rural Development Agency in Dhemaji on deputation in 2006.

But he managed to come out clean in that inquiry.

The source said the vigilance and anti-corruption bureau would also initiate a separate inquiry against him for allegedly amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.