RAHIM YAR KHAN, July 7: An SDO and a sub-engineer of the Irrigation department were caught red-handed while taking bribe from a contractor here.

Contractor Malik Afzal informed the Anti-Corruption Establishment that SDO Maqsood Aslam and sub-engineer Abdur Rehman Tariq demanded bribe from him when he went to receive his cheque after the completion of the work at Sadiq Branch Canal. The complainant said that he told officials he would make payment to them after encashing of his cheque. In the meanwhile, he reported the matter to the ACE.

On Wednesday, Afzal got the payment from UBL’s Shahi Road branch, while both the officials were waiting outside the bank in an official jeep (BNA-4857) to receive the bribe. As they were taking the bribe, magistrate Majid Hussain, ACE deputy director Mehmood Masood, circle officer Muhammad Zafar along with constables Muhammad Nazir and Zafar raided there and caught them red-handed.

They also recovered Rs10,000 from the SDO and Rs9,500 from the sub-engineer they had taken in bribe from the contractor.