Delhi AAP MLA's brother-in-law held over bribe for poll ticket
New Delhi (PTI): Delhi government's Anti Corruption Branch has arrested AAP MLA Akhilesh Pati Tripathi's brother-in-law and his two associates for allegedly demanding Rs 90 lakh for giving a party worker's wife a ticket to contest the civic polls.
The incident came to light on Monday after a Gopal Khari, who stated that he is associated with the Aam Aadmi Party as an active worker since 2014, approached the ACB with the complaint, according to an official statement on Wednesday.
Khari had met Model Town legislator Tripathi last Wednesday with a request to secure a councillor ticket from the AAP for his wife for Ward No. 69 in Kamla Nagar, the ACB said.
Tripathi had demanded Rs 90 lakh for it, following which Khari had paid Rs 35 lakh to him. He also gave Rs 20 lakh to AAP MLA Rajesh Gupta on the Tripathi's insistence, according to a complaint.
Khari had told Tripathi that the remaining amount would be paid by him after getting the ticket. But on Sunday, the complainant did not find his wife's name in the list of contesting councillors released by the AAP as the ticket from his ward was given to some other person.
Later, Tripathi's brother-in-law, Om Singh, contacted Khari and assured him that the ticket would be given to him in the next election. Singh also offered to return the bribe amount that was given, it stated.
On the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday, the ACB laid a trap at the Khari's residence, where Singh and his associates -- Shiv Shankar Pandey and Prince Raghuvanshi -- were caught when they came to return the Rs 33 lakh received by them on behalf of Tripathi
The three were arrested under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Indian Penal Code. Pandey is the personal assistant of Tripathi, it said.
The complainant has submitted audio and video recordings of his alleged dealings during payment and return of the bribe amount. An investigation is on to unearth the whole case and to collect evidence, it added.
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Maharashtra sets up state vaccination task force to strengthen immunisation programme
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has set up a State Vaccination Task Force to strengthen the regular immunisation programme and review the progress of related campaigns, a health department official said on Monday.
The State Vaccination Task Force will comprise at least 29 members and will be headed by the administrative head of the health department, he informed.
The government has also constituted separate district-level and municipal vaccination task forces to improve implementation and address challenges at the grassroots level, he said.
Municipal task forces, chaired by respective civic commissioners, have been constituted in view of the vast urban population in Maharashtra and the role of civic bodies in implementing different health programmes.
The district-level task forces will function under the chairmanship of collectors.
"Complete immunisation of children at the appropriate age is an extremely simple, cost-effective and highly effective measure to reduce child mortality and the prevalence of diseases among kids. Immunisation is a powerful tool for reducing illness in children," maintained the official.
To ensure full vaccination of all children, the state government implements various campaigns from time to time as per the central government guidelines, he pointed out.
"Active participation and cooperation of other relevant government departments are essential (in making these campaigns successful)," according to the official.
The state-level body will review the regular immunisation programme, associated campaigns and vaccine-preventable diseases in detail. It will also conduct focused assessments of high-risk districts and municipal corporations, including vacancies at district, municipal and sub-district levels, availability of cold chain equipment, resource gaps and training requirements, he noted.
The state task force will review allocation and utilisation of funds for immunisation and ensure timely action by officers concerned based on reports from district and municipal task forces and state-level monitoring mechanisms, the official said.
It will also ensure active coordination and participation of other government departments in immunisation drives, while district and municipal task forces will carry out similar functions at their respective levels, the official added.
