Bribery issue: Jail chief suspended

Bengaluru: A superintendent of prison posted at the Central Prison at Parapanna Agrahara was on Thursday placed under suspension pending inquiry after he was caught on camera while taking bribe from a family member of a convict for an ‘interview’ with him. Interview in prison jargon is the time allotted to a convict to meet his family members or lawyers under official supervision.

Home Minister K.J. George has instructed the Prison Department to take stern action against corrupt officials. SP Ashe Khan, who was allegedly video graphed by a vernacular TV channel while taking a bribe from the relative of a convict for an interview was on Thursday morning  placed under suspension pending inquiry, said the Additional Director General of Police and Inspector General of Prisons K.V. Gagandeep.

“We have placed him under suspension and I have directed the Additional Inspector General of Prisons V.S. Raja to conduct an inquiry and submit the report,” Gagandeep added. Khan has reportedly been under the cloud for quite some time on charges of corruption and was transferred to Mysore Central Prison two years ago, but he was transferred back to Bengaluru Central Prison last year to be with his wife, who is also a State government employee and works at Vidhana Soudha.