VACB arrests municipal official, sanitation worker for accepting bribe in Thrissur

Thrissur(Kerala), Dec 4 (PTI) An official of Wadakkanchery Municipality and a sanitation worker were arrested while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 3,000 to issue a licence to a scrap trading firm on Thursday, the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) said.

The arrested are Jithesh Kumar KV, the manager of the municipality’s Clean City programme and a native of Kasaragod, and temporary sanitation worker Santhosh M B, a native of Wadakkanchery.

According to VACB, the complainant, a resident of Kolazhy in Thrissur, runs a scrap trading business in a building he owns. As the establishment's licence expired on November 14, 2025, he submitted an online application to the Wadakkanchery Municipality to renew it.

As no action was taken even after two weeks, the complainant visited the municipal office and learned that the file was with Kumar, a VACB official, said.

When he met Kumar on Wednesday, the officer allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 3,000 to issue the licence and asked him to bring the money to the office on Thursday, VACB said.

Unwilling to pay the bribe, the complainant informed the Thrissur Vigilance Deputy Superintendent of Police. A trap was set, and the vigilance team monitored the situation, the VACB officer added.

Around 12 noon on Thursday, as directed by Kumar, Santhosh allegedly accepted the Rs 3,000 bribe from the complainant inside the Wadakkanchery Municipality office. Later, Kumar was also arrested by the VACB, the officer said.

VACB said it was the fifth trap case registered in the state in the last week, and that over 50 officials had been caught in similar operations this year. PTI TBA TBA ADB