Panna (MP), Aug 26 (PTI) A revenue official was caught red-handed while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 25,000 from a businessman to dispose of an encroachment case in Madhya Pradesh's Panna district on Wednesday, an official said.

A case against the businessman for encroaching on government land was pending in the court of tehsildar and Rajendra Soni, a patwari, had demanded a bribe of Rs 50,000 to deal with it, Lokayukta inspector Abhishek Verma said.

Also Read | Mamata Banerjee Announces Total Lockdown in West Bengal on Sept 7, 11 and 12 Amid COVID-19, Orders All Educational Institutes to Remain Shut Till Sept 20.

Lokayukta officials caught Soni while accepting the first installment of the bribe from the complainant in Pavai town of the district, he said.

However, Soni claimed that he was innocent and he had taken the money as a donation for the construction of a temple in town and had also given a receipt to the complainant.

Also Read | Accenture to Lay Off 25,000 Employees, Indians Set to Lose Jobs.

A case has been registered in this regard and further investigations are underway, the official said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)