Golaghat, July 1: The anti-corruption and vigilance wing of Assam police is looking into the involvement of officials of the Golaghat deputy commissioner's office and also into the role of the deputy commissioner in the arrest of an excise superintendent of Golaghat district.

Golaghat district excise superintendent Jibon Chandra Phukan was arrested red-handed yesterday while taking a bribe of Rs 25,000 from Parinita Dutta, owner of a liquor bar in Bongaon.

"We are looking into the involvement of officials of the deputy commissioner's office and the role of the deputy commissioner in the whole matter," a source in the anti-corruption and vigilance department said.

Phukan was taken to Guwahati where he has been sent to custody of the anti-corruption and vigilance cell for four days. Another team of the anti-corruption and vigilance cell conducted a raid at his residence at Chandan Nagar in Jorhat.

Phukan was today produced in the Court of the Special Judge, Assam, Alokeshwar Bhattacharyya and remanded to four days police custody.

The investigating officer of the vigilance and anti-corruption cell had asked for seven days custody of the accused but the court allowed only four days custody and also directed the investigating officer to provide food and medicines to the accused.

When contacted, deputy commissioner Vornali Deka said she has no record of when files are brought in or taken out of the office, as there is no proper file management system. Asked about her name being dragged into the matter, she said an arrested person might say anything to save his skin.

Parinita had to relocate her existing bar because of the ongoing four-laning of National Highway 37 from Numaligarh Tiniali to Tinsukia. She had, therefore, applied for permission from the excise department's office here.

"I was told by Phukan that my file is lying in the deputy commissioner's office. I have deposited the bar renewal amount of Rs 2,50,000 but my file did not move forward. When I contacted Phukan, he told me I have to pay Rs 30,000 to get my file moving and ultimately he settled for Rs 25,000. He also told me that as the file is stuck in the deputy commissioner's office, a portion of the amount will have to shared with officials at the office," Parinita said.

She said she informed the matter in detail to the anti-corruption and vigilance cell by filing an FIR and accordingly they arrested him from his office.

Dutta's file was subsequently seized from the deputy commissioner's officer last night.